Diébédo Francis Kéré to Design 2017 Serpentine Pavilion

Diébédo Francis Kéré, one of the few internationally renowned architects from Africa, has been commissioned to design the 2017 Serpentine Pavilion in London's Kensington Gardens. The structure will be a large wooden disc inspired by the canopy of a tree, under which people in Kéré's home village used to gather for discussions. Kéré stated, 'The tree was always the most important place. I want the pavilion to have the same function: a simple open shelter, to create a sense of freedom and community.' The pavilion will be defined laterally by a series of curved blue walls made of staggered wooden blocks, referencing traditional festive clothing from Burkina Faso. Kéré, born in 1965 in Gando, studied in Ouagadougou and later at the Technische Universität Berlin, where he founded Kéré Architecture in 2005. He received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2004 for his school structures in Gando that combine clay, raw earth, and cement with effective ventilation systems. In 2010, he was awarded the BSI Swiss Architectural Award. His work has been featured in exhibitions at MoMA New York (Small Scale, Big Change, 2010) and the Royal Academy in London (Sensing Spaces, 2014). The pavilion follows Bjarke Ingels' 2016 Serpentine Pavilion and will open in summer 2017.