WEEK IN REVIEW

INTERVIEW: AFRICAN ARCHITECT OLAJUMOKE ADENOWO ON NEO HERITAGE

designboom spoke with olajumoke adenowo, one of africa's most influential female architects, about her new book, 'neo heritage: defining contemporary african architecture'. published by rizzoli new york, the volume presents adenowo's unique vision and introduces the concept of neo heritage, which is rooted in african heritage design principles. 'I have observed that africans did not have ‘art for art’s sake’. their approach to aesthetics is what I have termed functional art. they adorned objects, buildings, even their bodies and faces with a clear purpose; ranging from identity, signifying status, branding, documenting a narrative, for worship, as an invocation etc.,' the architect explains. read our conversation in full here, and discover more recent interviews here.

THE COST OF MONEY AT MIES VAN DER ROHE'S BARCELONA PAVILION

following interventions by sabine marcelis, IAAC, and luftwerk and iker gil, mies van der rohe's barcelona pavilion hosts ‘the cost of money: raft’ by artist-architect mark cottle. on view until july 23, the project draws attention to the very high human and environmental cost of capital worldwide by filling the iconic modernist space with two large carpets, each formed by a network of single-use plastic bags of different colors.

A BIODEGRADABLE FELT ARMCHAIR INSPIRED BY NOMADIC LIVING

kazakh designer daniyar uderbekov has created an armchair made of biodegradable, consciously-sourced felt and wrapped around a durable 3D-printed frame. with a lifespan of 70-80 years, the armchair offers longevity of use, while its materials can be disposed hassle-free after, ultimately benefitting the environment by enriching the soil. see more submissions by our readers here, and find out how to upload your own project here.

the weekly is an inside review curated by sofia lekka angelopoulou.