This year, one of the winners of the Aga Khan Award was the Renovation of the Niemeyer Guest House by East Architecture Studio. The project is located on Tripoli’s outskirts in Lebanon, and it is part of the Rachid Karami International Fair (RKIF), an unfinished masterpiece by Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer. ArchDaily’s Managing Editor, Christele Harrouk had the chance to sit with Charles Kettaneh and Nicolas Fayad, founders of the East Architecture Studio, on-site in "the Niemeyer Guest House Renovation" project. Talking about modern heritage and the challenges of renovations, the architects opened the conversation about the role of architecture in building platforms for change.
“Not flexibility, but reversibility” (16:21)
As presented in Rami Rizk’s photographs, the fairground designed by Oscar Niemeyer is now an abandoned and dilapidated site. The construction initiated in the early sixties was never finished, as the Lebanese Civil War broke out in 1975. Nevertheless, the complex represents an important part of modern architectural heritage in Lebanon and worldwide. While intervening in the Guest House, the architects recognized the value of the building, while also understanding the need to introduce a new program, one that was not originally designed for: a design hub and carpenter’s workshop. Through this new initiative, the project aimed to revitalize the wood-making sector, an artisanal craft with a long tradition in Tripoli. To reconcile these needs, the architects adopted the idea of reversibility. The new additions create space well adapted for the new program, but they are also easily demountable so that the building could adopt new identities in the future without affecting its structure.
“An introverted building” (20:15)
From the outside, the Guest House is overwhelmingly opaque in appearance, but the interior surprises with its light-flooded spaces surrounding a central courtyard. The interior space is marked by the horizontal ribs, a structural element that also serves as a decorative one. The renovation project evolved from a research-based approach that carefully analyzed the intended character of the spaces. It took into consideration the existing materiality of the building and adapted it to the new function. The light was also an important factor. All the installations and technical features are designed to work with the proportions of the existing elements, thus enhancing their presence.
“Incremental urban regeneration” (25:11)
The jury of the Aga Kahn Award recognized this project as “an inspiring tale of architecture's capacity for repair during a dizzying, entangled crisis worldwide, and in Lebanon in particular”. Architects Charles Kettaneh and Nicolas Fayad further develop this idea. They see this project’s success as a starting point, a punctual intervention that can encourage a larger transitional strategy for the city at large. They understand the role of architects not as saviors, but as facilitating agents with the ability to build bridges between stakeholders. In this case, they understood the necessity to preserve the heritage of the existing building without compromising the client’s brief. Since opening in 2018, this renovation project has sparked the interest of other agents to identify failures and seek their potential for change.
The Aga Khan Award aims to identify and encourage building concepts that address the needs of communities where Muslims have a significant presence. For the 2020-2022 cycle, the Award has recognized 121 projects that raise awareness about local and global issues from around the world.
