The Louisiana Hamlet Pavilion, designed by Spanish architects Jose Selgas and Lucia Cano of SelgasCano, has been dismantled from its Copenhagen home at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. The disassembled parts have been shipped to Kenya and will to be reconstructed in the sprawling slum of Kibera in Nairobi. The pavilion will replace the Kibera Hamlets School, a dilapidated shelter that currently acts as a school for 600 pupils.
The pavilion was curated to form a part of Louisiana’s latest exhibition “Africa: Architecture, Culture, Identity”. It was used as a viewing space for three short films connected to the theme “building futures”.
The relocation of the pavilion came about through the joint efforts of architectural photographer Iwan Baan, SelgasCano, the Louisiana Museum, and London-based creative workspace Second Home. According to Dezeen, Baan conceptualised the relocation of the pavilion after he visited the Kibera Hamlets School, which provides children with an education despite having no drainage, toilets, electricity or adequate roof to keep out the frequent rain.
The pavilion is made from common materials such as colourful scaffolding, chipboard and hard plastic sheets. At it’s new location it will feature a dozen classrooms for nursery, primary and secondary pupils, plus new offices, toilets and a cooking area.
In 2004, the Kibera Hamlets School was originally founded by local youths to act as football club to keep children off the streets. It has grown into a community-run school funded by donations.
