Architecture and politics in Nigeria : the study of a late twentieth-century Enlightenment-inspired modernism at Abuja, 1900-2016 / Nnamdi Elleh.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Elleh, Nnamdi, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Architecture--Nigeria--Abuja (Federal Capital Territory).

Architecture.

Architecture and state.

Nigeria--Abuja (Federal Capital Territory).

Architecture and state--Nigeria.

Nigeria.

Physical Description:

l, 300 pages ; 26 cm

Place of Publication:

Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, 2017.

Summary:

"By examining the creation of the modernist national public spaces of Abuja within a broader historical and global context, this book looks at how the successes and the failures of these spaces have affected the citizens of the country and have, in fact, radicalized individuals and been scene to some of the most important political events and terrorist targets, including bombing and protest rallies. Although focusing on Nigeria's capital, the study has a wider global implication that calls attention to how postcolonial countries that were formed at the turn of the twentieth century are continuously fragmenting and remade by the emergence of new nation states like South Sudan."-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

1 Abuja in Nigerian and African modern architectural history 4

Locating Abuja's urban form in global architectural modernism 6

Abuja as a postcolonial capital city after World War II 13

Abuja: a capital city in discontent with architectural modernism(s) 14

Public space in the aftermath of the Iranian Revolution and in the post-Berlin Wall context 19

2 The inauguration in the civic space, 2 December 1991 26

Contestations and wars in the public spaces of Abuja 41

Emancipation in the public spaces at Abuja and in Nigerian cities 43

Abuja as the public sphere for transforming Nigeria 45

3 The amalgamation of Nigeria and the search for capital city location, 1900-1960 51

Modem landscape world-views of the Nigeria capitalist project 55

Colonial debates to establish Nigeria and its national seat of government 57

Lugard and the "dual mandate" world-view plan for Nigeria 63

The social space facilitated by Lugard when he established Nigeria, 1900-1960 66

Insiders' perspective I: Senator Abu Ibrahim and Professor Akin Mabogunje 72

4 General Obasanjo: Making the development of the FCT irreversible, 1976-1979 77

The competition and the selection of Thomas Todd and Kenzo Tange 79

President Shehu Shagari: "the light that failed" during the rush to build Abuja, 1979-1983 83

Insider's perspective II: Umar G. Benna 86

Insider's perspective III: E. A. D. Nsiegbe 87

Insider's perspective IV: Denis Browne 88

5 The paths to "one of the most enormous commercial disputes in history" 95

An oil boom in patronage of "a monument to progress" 95

The cement scandal: the military exculpates itself from the national congestion caused by its capitalist interests 99

A development "at breakneck speed": what was at stake for the suppliers? 107

6 Thomas Todd: reconstructing Nigeria's political consciousness in Washington, D.C.'s Enlightenment urban design ideas 115

The city, from sketches to urban spaces 115

The city as a space of social interactions and mnemonics 117

Wallace McHarg Roberts and Todd (WMRT) of Philadelphia 119

Who designed what at Abuja? The American Institute of Architects (AIA) finds itself in the middle of a design controversy 127

Siting civic and public spaces in nature at Abuja 138

Testing three generic urban forms on the site: compact, multi-centered, and linear urban forms 147

Influences of design concepts from the urban forms of Brasilia, Chandigarh, Canberra, and Washington on Abuja's urban form 151

Establishing the hygienic and monumental government precinct at Abuja 160

Designing Abuja's civic and public spaces in the image of Washington, D.C.'s urban form 161

The Mall: Todd's strategies for translating Abuja's national landscapes into civic and public spaces/spheres 163

Discussing Todd's modular city: sectors, districts, communities, and neighborhoods 174

7 Kenzo Tange Urtec and Albert Speer Partners: the journey from Hiroshima and Tokyo to Abuja 185

Reflections on the Tokyo Metropolitan Complex 195

Designing Abuja's Central Area in 1981 after Tokyo Bay's 1960 master plan 196

Tange's fortress Three Arms Zone at Abuja 202

Insider's perspective V: Ryoji Terajima interviewed the interviewer 211

Insider's Perspective VI: Testuo Furuichi, the elucidator of Tange's urban design 214

Abuja's mall: Tange's epitaph and desire to free urban space by lifting buildings on pilotis 221

Albert Speer's plan: an ecologically sensitive Champs Élysées for Abuja 233

Insider's perspective VII: Matthias Nuss examines the master plans 237

8 Milton Keynes Development Corporation (MKDC) and Doxiadis Associates: experiencing the modern neighborhoods and the neighbors 248

Encountering the "other" in the center of unity 251

Insider's perspective VIII: John Napleton and the design for living "modern" life at Abuja 254

Doxiadis Associates and the Ekistics science 259

The satellite towns 263

9 Conclusion: the planned capital where the president is a "squatter" 272

Giving citizens the opportunity to participate in civic urban and architectural projects 272

The military's hidden agenda 274

Capital city as the civic and the public spheres for the exchange of ideas 275

A late twentieth-century Enlightenment-inspired African modernism 276

The planned capital where the president is a "squatter" 277.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781472465290

1472465296

OCLC:

951172834

Publisher Number:

99975437242