Two of the most ambitious religious edifices of the 20th century are the Our Lady of Peace Basilica in the West African country of the Ivory Coast and the Hassan II Mosque in Morocco. Nnamdi Elleh not only provides a substantial architectural and pictorial analysis of the buildings themselves. Using these two buildings as case studies, he also investigates questions of national memory, urban form, architectural styles, concepts of democracy, social hierarchies as well as the elites who make the decisions to build Africa’s post-independence monuments and capital cities. His book is an exciting synthesis of theoretical and empirical analysis that is bound to stimulate debate about the form and content of post-colonial identities in Africa.
Editorial Reviews
Review
“probes the multiple meanings of two huge and potent “icons of crisis.” Elleh’s analysis brings together issues of statecraft, indigenous symbolism, religious experience, and individual hubris.”-Gwendolyn Wright Professor, Graduate School of Architecture Columbia University
?Elleh has chosen a provacative topic and this ambitious but highly readable book raises serious questions. It places architecture at the center of debates about culture, power, religion, and politics. Whether one agrees with Elleh or not, he is treading into new territory here. He is not responding to the canon, he is writing it.?-International Journal of African Historical Studies
“Elleh has chosen a provacative topic and this ambitious but highly readable book raises serious questions. It places architecture at the center of debates about culture, power, religion, and politics. Whether one agrees with Elleh or not, he is treading into new territory here. He is not responding to the canon, he is writing it.”-International Journal of African Historical Studies
About the Author
NNAMDI ELLEH is Assistant Professor of Architecture at the College of Design, Art, Architecture & Planning (DAAP), and was a Samuel Ittleson Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study In the Visual Arts (CASVA), National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
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