The GoDown Arts Centre

Dialogue that shapes design

While one aim was to provide an improved home for artists and creative industries, another was to offer valuable public services that anchor the building in community life. Through physical workshops and online initiatives, ideas and wishlists were generated from The GoDown community. This included artists and creative entrepreneurs, as well as school children, local businesses, city representatives and the general public. This process is an ongoing dialogue, so the resultant designs are continually energised, refreshed, and reflected upon.

The new GoDown arts centre is organised around three courtyard levels. The largest at ground floor is designed as an impressive welcoming space. This main courtyard can accommodate hundreds of visitors, and includes a corner for children, art activity and play. This area also connects an exhibition space, library, auditorium, museum, atelier and offices. The auditorium itself is an interesting architectural object within the main courtyard, complete with a rooftop restaurant. A grand staircase leads upwards to a second courtyard of dance rehearsal and creative studio spaces. In the third and most intimate courtyard are visual artist studios, arranged in duplex-formations. Underground vehicular parking free up the courtyards for leisure activities, such as open-air performances and skating. Additional film and music studios are also situated at basement level.

The universal algorithm

The main façade, as well as the spatial organisation around the courtyards, take their inspiration from fractals. These mathematical patterns are the building blocks of the natural world, yet they also reoccur in the human environment. From the arrangement of villages, to hair braiding patterns; fractals are omnipresent in African and Kenyan culture. The permeability of the façade helps convey the idea of openness, even though the entire centre can be locked down out-of-hours. Façade detailing options are currently being investigated in collaboration with the local architects at Planning Systems and The GoDown’s resident artists.

A key achievement of the GoDown Arts Centre has been the establishment of meaningful relations with diverse Nairobi communities through continuing engagement, as well as enhancement of singular and cross-cultural activity. The push for self-understanding and comprehensive cohesiveness means we now have more self-aware, integrated neighborhoods that enhance Kenyan artistic and cultural life.