a dialogue with mariam kamara of atelier masōmī: first, do no harm

‘we create the space that the rest of the world lives in’

architect mariam kamara founded her studio atelier masōmī in 2014. taking influence from her background in niger, she designs her works with great respect for both the natural environment and for the people occupying them. much of her architecture is fundamentally community-oriented — from a vibrant intervention to a local marketplace, to the transformation of a disused mosque into a library, mariam kamara recognizes the great responsibility of architects and seeks to make choices that are better.

designboom spoke with the atelier masōmī founder to find out more about her design processes and philosophies.

portrait of mariam kamara, founder of atelier masōmī

a dialogue with mariam kamara

designboom (DB): what aspects of your background and upbringing have shaped your design principles and philosophies?

mariam kamara (MK): growing up in the desert has had the highest impact on who I am as a designer. this is both in terms of the history of the place I grew up in but also the extreme nature of the climate. this has made me concerned with issues related to sustainability and climate change from an architectural point of view. thermal comfort, economic constraints, and social equity all came with the territory.

atelier masōmī uses colorful metal canopies to build dandaji market in niger | read more here

DB: how do you think your studio has evolved since its founding in 2014?

MK: I had a certain idea of the kind of studio that I wanted and we’ve been very lucky to get to do that kind of work, with the staff that we have in our office in niamey. after eight years, we’re in a position where we are attracting clients from around the world who are interested in the kind of work that we do. in the beginning, it was very much about triggering the projects ourselves but now clients come to us looking for exactly the kind of architects that we are.

the starting point was in niger, but now we’re working on projects in neighboring countries, and outside of the continent. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to test my ideas on a more global scale. I now realize that a lot of what I was doing in niger was actually much more fundamental than I knew, and essentially concerns us all. rather than the challenges I was interested in being african problems — many of them turned ouT to be quite widespread such as working around access to water, prioritizing local materials and skills, and so on. there’s something inspiring about working through a process that allows us to design something unique for our clients, no matter where in the world they may be.

atelier masomi with studio chahar transform a disused mosque into a library in niger

DB: can you describe your process, how your projects are developed from start to finish? are sketching and modelmaking still a common practice?

MK: absolutely. but before we even get there, I think the most important aspect of our process is the research and the on-the-ground interactions. I always resist the impulse to just throw ideas at something. it’s really important for me to know as much as possible about the place and the people who will be using the space before anything happens. I worry that if I start sketching immediately, what I find out in the research process won’t matter because I’m already going in a certain direction, right? it’s difficult to change course once we start on the path.

we conduct thorough initial research. from an historical point of view, to researching the site’s materials, to demographics — we look at everything. we also try to come in contact with a sample representative of the kind of users that would be in that building, not so much the clients, and that leads to very surprising possibilities. I think the commercial projects are the only exception, where it’s really about the clients. otherwise what comes out of people’s psyches often surprises you and that can lead the project in a completely different direction. I definitely always hope for that.

atelier masomi with studio chahar transform a disused mosque into a library in niger

DB: can you tell us about your experience working with david adjaye as part of the rolex mentor and protege arts initiative?

MK: It was incredibly transformative. I was lucky enough to be part of this program and my hope was, ‘I really hope I can harness this experience to improve on my skills’. it ended up being much more.

sir david was interested in the dialogue rather than just feeding me information or handing down his knowledge. he was much more interested in guiding me to do what I was interested in doing rather than just handing down fundamental things that he might have learned.

he wanted to find out what I wanted to do and how he could help me achieve it, as was the case with the niamey cultural center. the rolex mentorship also came at a time in his career where he was beginning to work a lot more in africa and along themes that I was also interested in particularly, around materiality and cultural heritage. so I think, in the beginning, there was a lot of guidance but in the end, we settled into a dialogue and exchange, which I think that was the biggest gift.

atelier masomi with studio chahar transform a disused mosque into a library in niger

DB: what do you consider to be the role of the architect in society today?

MK: I think the role is quite vast, actually, mostly because our responsibilities are vast. we’ve done a lot of damage that we somehow have managed to put on the lap of someone else. we seem to think that a lot of what’s happening with the environment is someone else’s fault. a lot of it is ours. we can make choices, we can put ideas on the table that are better for our clients. we can imagine spaces that are healthier. we can imagine spaces that heal. new design approaches to hospitals, for example, can help both psychologically but also aid in the healing process.

so there’s just so much we can contribute. the reality is that we know about the horrible things we’ve done through architecture, right? whether you’re thinking about present design or thinking about colonization — how architecture was used as a tool for subjugation throughout history or as a tool to demonstrate how great certain empires were. architecture has the power to touch and impact people’s lives and i think it’s our responsibility to use this power in a way that serves the majority and not just the privileged few.

atelier masōmī, making of an artisan’s valley, venice architecture biennale 2021

at the end of the day, we create the space that the rest of the world lives in. whether it’s the cities that they live in, the apartment buildings, the houses, it’s all us! not to say that we can save the world or anything like that. it’s about actually being mindful that what we do has an impact and to make sure that, kind of like doctors, that we do no harm. so first do no harm, and then, what can we do better?

atelier masōmī, making of an artisan’s valley, venice architecture biennale 2021
the semicircular, perforated shells modeled here are inspired by niger’s rural cylindrical clay granary clusters

DB: outside of architecture, what are you currently interested in and how is it influencing your work?

MK: I’m incredibly boring! (laughs) I’ve been approached to do some product design, furniture design. so that’s been really interesting. on the side as a relaxation tool, I paint. you have to find the time and mental space to do it, but otherwise, I think I’m obsessive! I always joke that if I didn’t have a family, if I didn’t have a child, I’d have serious problems, because I would just design and paint 24/7.

atelier masōmī, making of an artisan’s valley, venice architecture biennale 2021
panels clad with embossed leather tiles show along the filmed stories of the artisans who made them