Event details

Across West Africa, the era of liberation and decolonization brought an extraordinary period of cultural experimentation and a profound reimagining of the future. From Ghana’s independence in 1957 through the decades that followed, newly independent nations turned to modern architecture to project forward-looking, progressive, and cosmopolitan visions of national identity. Shaped by broader political ideas of Pan-Africanism and Africanization, this emerging architectural culture brought together architects from the region and around the world.

On the occasion of the Museum of Modern Art exhibition Architects of Liberation: Modernism in Western Africa (on view through January 2, 2027), Martino Stierli, Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at MoMA, will discuss the exhibition and the role of architecture in this pivotal era. He will be joined by Anna Arabindan-Kesson (Princeton University, African American Studies) and Esra Akcan (Cornell University, Architecture) to explore the political and cultural dimensions of modernism across West Africa, and how anti-colonial, diasporic, and alternative histories might reshape our understanding of modern architecture. The event will conclude with an audience Q&A.

Co-organized with Media + Modernity