In Building Stories, published by Taschen, Francis Kéré tells his story. The Pritzker Prize winner’s first monograph reveals a great deal about the self-image of the architect from Burkina Faso – and that of his Berlin-based architectural practice.
Sandra Hofmeister
Francis Kéré. Building Stories, 444 Seiten, Taschen, Köln 2026 → jetzt bestellen
Wish and effect
Sooner or later, every major and well-known architectural practice treats itself to a book of its own. And because architectural monographs are self-funded and costly to produce, they are also about self-promotion and public image. Even more so than websites, they reveal a great deal about the architects themselves and their desire to steer the interpretation and reception of their projects in a particular direction, and to cultivate a specific image. Desire and effect are therefore closely intertwined, which is why architectural monographs are also valuable marketing tools; nothing is left to chance, the effect is carefully considered. Softcover or a stately cloth binding? Architectural photographs or snapshots from the building site? Which graphic designers are creating the book – and which publisher is bringing it out? All of this has consequences for how the architect presents themselves to the public.
© Kerstin Diehl
"Im a doer"
In 2022, Diébédo Francis Kéré became the first African ever to be awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize. In 2007, he founded his practice, Kéré Architecture, in Berlin. His first monograph has now been published by Taschen. Despite its 450 pages, the softcover edition is compact, light and easy to handle. It features many unpublished hand sketches, technical drawings, texts and photographs of people, buildings and construction processes. A total of 26 projects are documented, and the style resembles a personal notebook. The chapters have headings that are as simple as they are memorable, such as ‘place’, ‘people’, ‘time’ or ‘shelter’. In the texts, we repeatedly encounter Kéré himself, who writes in the first person – a first-hand insight. “People are the start and the end of my design process,” he explains to us. Sometimes the architect even addresses his readers directly; his observations then sound a bit like confessions: “Don’t take me as an intellectual. I am a doer.” Or: “In these pages, I lay myself bare. You will discover who I am. You will find my fears, the mistakes, the efforts and the passions that brought me here.” It takes a certain skill to convey such intimacy convincingly, but with Kéré it sounds perfectly natural. Well then!
© Kerstin Diehl
Authentic insights
What are the personal and private passions that the architect reveals to us in his new book? So let’s get up close and personal with Francis and accept his invitation. For journalists, too, this feels like something of a sensation, for since winning the Pritzker Prize, Kéré has been an international superstar who is almost impossible to get close to. The timeline of documented projects in the monograph goes back to the first completed building in 2001, the primary school in Gando, the architect’s home village in Burkina Faso. The current commissions on which Kéré and his team are currently working – such as the Las Vegas Museum of Art – are covered at the end of the book, with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) on board as experienced partners. The large museum building in California is due to open in 2029; the book features renderings that are of little informative value.
© Kerstin Diehl
From the Global South to Supercapitalism
The focus on future projects is the weak point of this book and, at the same time, arguably the most interesting aspect of Kéré Architecture’s portfolio. For what exactly happens when the story of the humble boy from Burkina Faso has to hold its own in the international capitalist world of architecture and consumerism? Does the modesty that Kéré claims for himself still hold up? The title of the monograph, “building stories”, is deliberately written in lower case – this could also turn out to be a deliberate gesture. Regardless of Kéré’s stance, however, it will soon become clear – at the latest when the museum in Las Vegas opens – whether his architecture has what it takes to unite both worlds, the Global South and the North.
The team of Kéré Architecture, © Kerstin Diehl
The book maker
To conclude, let’s take a look at the book itself. The sturdy cardboard of the softcover features a beautiful sketch – a tree of questions brimming with essential thoughts. The cover, made of blue tracing paper, wraps around the volume like a fragile, delicate dress. The page edges are coloured, allowing the individual chapters to be recognised at a glance even within the book block. And then there’s the paper quality. Some pages are made of thin, translucent drawing paper, others of standard weight. The tactile quality becomes a sensory element of the reading experience in its own right. The graphic design of “building stories” is the work of a master of her craft: the Amsterdam-based book designer Irma Boom. She enjoys experimenting with paper types, bindings and typographic concepts – and yes. One of her most recent books was the exhibition catalogue diagrams for OMA’s major show at the Fondazione Prada in Venice. Kéré may come across as modest in his texts, but this book has other ambitions: the meticulously designed and produced volume makes it clear that Kéré Architecture wants to play in the top league and be among the best.
Francis Kéré. Building Stories
Softcover, 19 x 25.5 cm, 444 pages
Design: Irma Boom
Köln, Taschen 2026
ISBN 978-3-7544-0507-9
© Kerstin Diehl
Francis Kére und Christof Schlingensief, © Kerstin Diehl
