diebedo francis kere: public library in gando

‘public library in gando’ by diebedo francis kere, gando, burkina faso all images courtesy of diebedo francis kere

as a recently completed humanitarian design by berlin-based practice diébédo francis kéré, the ‘public library in gando’ is a freestanding addition to the primary school the firm completed some years before (covered here by designboom) – one of the first educational buildings in the region. a rigid orthogonal concrete ring and frame structure extends the facade of the adjacent institution and is held up by rhythmically placed eucalyptus columns, never before used for architectural purposes, that define a buffer zone between the exterior and interior. an elliptical brick wall offset from the center line of the roof frame constitutes the main protected library space. many hand-made clay pots were carried into town and cut into sections, poured in place into the canopy to fill the inside with a multiplicity of diverse circular openings for light.

site

interior private reading space

interior public reading space

interior main space with light circles

community carrying pots for construction

children and adults alike help to prepare the pots on site

once cut, the pots are transported to the structure

construction of the roof

placing the pots and pouring them into place

floor plan / level 0

roof plan

section

section

original rendering with corrugated metal panel roof

original rendering