Open House Lagos returns for the third edition of its annual architectural festival in Lagos, Nigeria on April 28 and April 29, 2018, and themed Amphibious Lagos: Water and the City.
Open House Lagos is the first and only architectural festival in Nigeria. Launched in 2016, the committee marked the first of its kind in Africa, dedicating the workers’ holiday weekend in Lagos to exploring the history, present and future of the city’s architecture through specially curated tours open to the public at no cost. It is tailored for all to appreciate and consider architecture as part of the wider impact in their communities.
This year’s theme, Amphibious Lagos: Water and the City, highlights Lagos as a water city. The urban area is built on a number of floodplains and encompasses a network of marshes, swamps, streams, creeks, rivers and estuaries all leading to the Lagos Lagoon. The 91 waterways discharge into the Lagoon and the Lagoon empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Lagos is surrounded by water!
Every year Lagos experiences heavy rainfall and in 2017, we saw that yearly rainfall impact our city with unprecedented flooding. The experience, pictures, and videos shared on social media after the heavy rain, though at times comical, clearly showed what the future could look like. Lagos needs to prepare for an amphibious life where water becomes as important as land.
This year, Open House Lagos will showcase not just the beauty of architecture but the importance of water in Lagos by opening up buildings for tours as well as producing talks and exhibitions. Open House Lagos will spread across Lagos Islands, Mainland and in-between, as it is deliberately curated to showcase the depth of architectural expression, aesthetics and functionality. It will also feature 30+ buildings and 11 tours spread across diverse transportation channels with the aim of providing tourists with a holistic feel of Lagos transportation system.
Open House Lagos 2018 is proudly supported by British Council, Pulse NG, BellaNaija.com, Ventures Africa, Nothing To DO In Lagos, 360 Nobs, Taxify NG, Matatu NG, Cycology, Livin Spaces, Guardian Life, Ebony Life TV.
ABOUT OPEN HOUSE
The Open House concept was initially conceived in London and began in 1992. Since then, 30 cities across the globe have adopted the same platform and established their own Open House annual events. The format and principle are simple – offer the general public unprecedented access to buildings noted for their architectural beauty and innovation; iconic designs that have, and will, stand the test of time as symbols of beauty, centers of excellence and community builders. Importantly, the festival does not charge the public for visits, in the belief that great architecture, if shared, is life enhancing and delivers rich cultural experiences for all.
ABOUT OPEN HOUSE ARCHITECTURAL FOUNDATION
Registered as a cultural non-profit, the activities of the foundation are managed by its Board of Trustees – Chuka Ihonor, Olamide Udoma-Ejorh, Papa Omotayo and Sola Akintunde. The Trustees were previously invited members of an advisory board put together by the British Council to develop the first African ‘Open House’ concept as part of their UK/NG 2015/2016 arts & culture project.
