ArchiAfrika-April-Magazine-English-final-v2

My Vista
Let us look at the conservation of town
planning, landscaping and architecture from
1895 onwards. The year 1895 is not chosen
arbitrarily. Being the year the East African
Protectorate was founded, it becomes the
year before which all tangible artefacts are
automatically protected according to the
National Museums and Heritage Act of
Kenya (2006).
Since my first encounter with Kenya in 1978
I have been impressed by the surprisingly
high quality of architecture. During my
annual trips to Kenya since 2007 I have
photographed buildings with a great passion.
A lecture called “Built Beauty” was written as
an account of this interaction and delivered
to a professional audience in Kenya in 2012.
Many were surprised by the presented
buildings and cultural landscapes.
Largely inspired by a variety of imported styles,
modern and recent constructions also make
a striking impression with their individual
style. Slowly, however, at the present moment
buildings and structures from the first half of
the 20th century are disappearing. This was
the epoch in which Kenya was suddenly - and
with force - pushed into the modern world
and became a part of a global community. In
fact, lots of new structures remind us of this
fascinating (and often frustrating) period.
However, since Kenya is a relatively young
nation, much attention has gone to other
priorities rather than to research and document
the built past. The enormous increase in
both population and economic growth are
determining the course of development.
Concerned individuals see that this tendency
of uncoordinated demolitions also destroys
the sources from which contemporary
architecture has consistently been drawn.
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