The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Le Korsa is pleased to announce Bët-bi, a new museum and centre for culture and community due to open in southwestern Senegal, in the vicinity of the historic city of Kaolack in early 2025.
Mariam Issoufou Kamara, an architect from Niger and founder of the award-winning practice atelier masōmī, has been selected by a jury to lead the design of Bët-bi from a shortlist of four African architectural firms which also included Aziza Chaouni Projects (Fez and Toronto), MASS Design Group (Rwanda and global) and Meskerem Assegued and Elias Sime (Addis Ababa). Bët-bi – which means “the eye” in Wolof – will be constructed on a site in the vicinity of Kaolack situated in the Senegambia region of West Africa which is renowned for the remarkable ancient stone megaliths that proliferate across this area and includes four Unesco World Heritage sites. The 1000 square meter space will comprise exhibition and events spaces, community rooms and a library.
“It is a great honour and a privilege to be selected to lead the design of Bët-bi. For far too long our region has been a place where cultural wealth is pillaged to profit museum collections. This project is an opportunity to design a new type of space that is inspired by the roots and spiritual legacy of the region. It is a chance to push the boundaries of what defines a museum in the 21st century,” said Kamara. Bët-bi will be a state-of-the-art museum using sustainable and traditional methods of building. Ensuring that the project is an opportunity for meaningful collaboration, atelier masōmī intends to work with local artisans to ensure that there is an exchange of knowledge and expertise. Underpinning the brief is the desire to create accessible communal spaces and an environment that is open and inclusive, where visitors can feel immediately welcome. A primary focus of the building is to respond to the historic and cultural complexities of the site, looking at ways to draw attention to the unique heritage of the Kaolack region. atelier masōmī’s proposal links the history of the stone megaliths with the present – building upon the significance of the area through a sensitive response to both the cultural heritage of the site and its future potential. Bët-bi’s design takes its inspiration from the people who have occupied this part of Senegal since the 11th century and are known for their profound spiritual connection not only to the land but to the natural elements such as the sun, wind and water. As Kamara explains: ‘We approached this project through a look back at the site’s past. We looked at the history of the Saloum Kingdom very closely and have been absolutely fascinated by its origin story, as a place jointly founded by the Serer and the Mandinka people. The latter are historically also a people from the Mali empire who are known for their monumental architecture. As museums and galleries are a product of our more recent past, it is important for me that the project serves as a bold imperative to continue the recent dialogue around rethinking the typology in order to explore new spatial languages around museums.”
Bët-bi will showcase contemporary and historic African art and celebrate the cultures of sub-Saharan Africa. It will be a living and breathing institution with art as its focal point and offer a dedicated education programme with a variety of initiatives aimed at engaging local and national communities with art from all corners of the globe. Staffed by a team of locally recruited curators and personnel, the museum intends to partner with a range of institutions in Africa and overseas to facilitate internship and guest curator programmes. Bët-bi also plans to serve as a temporary space for repatriated African objects, expediting the critical undertaking of returning African art to the continent of its creation by acting as a facilitator between Western collections and the African nations and communities to whom the objects rightly belong but which may not currently have the resources to conserve them. In particular, the museum aims to play an important role in the global initiatives to facilitate and secure the return of objects of West-African origin.
Nicholas Fox Weber, Executive Director of the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation and Founder and President of Le Korsa says: “Bët-bi will be an institution where everyone, regardless of background, can celebrate and experience the unequalled wonders of visual art. People who may never before have entered a museum as well as international visitors will have the chance to enjoy art that relates to the culture of the Sahel and to experience it as an essential respite from life's inevitable hardships. The universality of great art – whether ancient, contemporary, local to sub-Saharan Africa, from the Diaspora, or from entirely different cultures – will be celebrated in a milieu that is inviting, friendly, and accessible to all. We are thrilled with Mariam Kamara as the unanimous choice of our distinguished architectural jury. Her profound respect for local traditions, keen awareness and knowledge of environmental impact, and eye for visual beauty will result in a building sure to help revitalize the economy of the region, providing the benefits well demonstrated from other new cultural institutions in locations with minimal previous tourism. Bët-bi will demonstrate Josef Albers's maxim of ‘minimal means for maximum effect’ and Anni Albers's faith in ‘art that is universal and timeless’.”