By Ogova Ondego
Published June 15, 2013
Four interesting exhibitions on durable architecture, building better cities, Nairobi in pictures and Conservation and Restoration of Historical and Cultural Assets dominate exhibitions in Nairobi in June 2013.
Alliance Francaise set the ball rolling on June 5 with three exhibitions that are running concurrently till June 30.
Running at the University of Nairobi’s Department of Architecture & Building Science June 18-28, 2013 is yet another exhibition tackling the themes of conservation, restoration, history and culture.
The inauguration of the exhibition at the University of Nairobi at 4.00PM on June 18 shall be preceded by a talk by Prof Giovanna De Palma of ISCR in Rome at 2.30pm.
Presented by the Istituto Superiore per la Conservazione e il Restauro (Advanced Institute for Conservation & Restoration) and running daily—including Saturdays, Sundays & public holidays—from 8.00am to 5pm, the theme of the exhibition is the activity of conservation and restoration of cultural assets with particular significance given to the role of the Istituto Centrale del Restauro (ISCR), a centre of excellence at the sector’s global level. There is no gate fee to view the exhibition.
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The three photo-text exhibitions at Alliance Française are ‘People Building Better Cities: Participation and Inclusive Urbanization’, ‘Architecture=durable’ and ‘NYROBI in Pictures: from a Swamp to a Capital City’.
NYROBI in Pictures, that is expected to end on July 7, 2013 not only highlights the growth of Kenya’s commercial and political capital from a papyrus swamp to present day modern skyscraper city, but also provides historical and architectural information on the city’s built heritage using historical photographs from private collections and the National Museums of Kenya as well as recent photographs by Yasuyoshi Chiba and Lydia W Muthuma. This photo exhibition is put together by Dr Lydia Muthuma and Evelyne Wanjiku in partnership with the Godown Art Centre and the Embassy of France in Kenya.
The Global Studio in partnership with Technical University of Kenya-organised People Building Better Cities, on the other hand, is expected to travel to 10 countries to exchange knowledge, build networks, and promote dialogue among communities, urban professionals, universities, non-governmental organisations, and policy makers on the challenges of inclusive urbanisation and climate change. The exhibition tackles urban issues.
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Architecture=durable is both a photo-text and multi-media exhibition organized by the Pavillon de l’Arsenal and sponsored by the Institut Français. The projects presented in it amplify the shared values of tomorrow’s sustainable urban community.
“Transcending technical and doctrinaire discourses”, the organisers say, “these projects are above all architectural and urban…address environmental concerns with a global vision that incorporates technical devices in an urban context. This exhibition is a demonstration of solutions to the equation architecture=sustainable.”
