Tropicana Magazine May-Jun 2018 #118: Winner Takes All

THE HOME
crimes against humanity, committed in
order to ‘ultimately to control the
Eritrean civilian population.’
Tens of thousands of people have fled
to neighbouring countries and to Europe,
many to escape military service. In 2014
and 2015, Eritreans were the largest group
of refugees coming to Italy across the
Mediterranean Sea.
The unique cultural treasure of
Asmara hardly fits in with this picture.
It is sometimes referred to as ‘La piccola
Roma’ (little Rome) or ‘the Miami of
Africa’ because of its many art deco
buildings.
Modern Asmara was largely created
during the Italian colonial period from
the 1920s to the 1940s. At the time,
modernism was in vogue in Europe,
with its clean lines, minimal frills and
functional designs. Far away from home,
the Italian architects in Asmara were
able to go wild.
There is “more flamboyance than in
the Italian context,” says Edward Denison,
a lecturer in architecture at University
College London (UCL).
As well as Italian modernism,
examples of the German Bauhaus style and
Futurism can also be found in Asmara.
Some of the curvy government buildings
are reminiscent of the White City in Tel
Aviv, a collection of Bauhaus buildings.
Several houses resemble the boxshaped
dwellings of the Weissenhof Estate
in Stuttgart. The Eritrean capital also
features unique fusions of European and
African architecture. For instance, the
Enda Mariam Cathedral, built in 1938,
combines modernist design with East
African architecture.
The buildings and the original town
planning are remarkably well-preserved.
“It feels very much intact as a 1930s and
1940s city,” says Denison.
Since the Second World War, the
city has hardly been developed. In 2001,
a building ban was imposed to protect
ST MARY’S
ORTHODOX
CATHEDRAL
“As well as
Italian
modernism,
examples of
the German
Bauhaus style
and Futurism can
also be found
in Asmara.”
43 MAY/JUNE 2018 | TM