Local Craftsmanship and Microarchitecture as Alternative Production Models

Episode 74 of Columbia #GSAPPconversations podcast: DK Osseo-Asare and Naeem Biviji in Conversation with Mpho Matsipa [via Soundcloud]

In this podcast episode, we continue the conversation around making culture in Nairobi, Lagos, Accra/Tema, and Johannesburg. Faculty Mpho Matsipa speaks with designers DK Osseo-Asare and Naeem Biviji about their making processes, which explore local craftsmanship and low-cost & small-scale architecture as alternatives to rapid industrialization and big infrastructure in Africa today. DK Osseo-Asare is co-founder and principal of architecture and integrated design studio Low Design Office (LOWDO), based in Austin, Texas and Tema, Ghana. Naeem Biviji is the co-founder of Studio Propolis, a design workshop based in Nairobi, Kenya run with partner Bethan Rayner. They were both part of the GSAPP event Building Cultures: Making in Nairobi, Lagos, Accra/Tema, and Johannesburg held at the school on September 6, 2019.

— This podcast was produced and edited by Lucy Krebsbach, Sritoma Bhattacharjee, and Yulin Peng. Listen on iTunes