Fragmented Landscapes

Situated in Suna settlement in the Msimbazi wetland, Fragmented Landscapes speaks to the socioeconomic and spatial gap that exists in the formal and informal landscape of Dar es Salaam. Informal settlements are home to 75% of the population of Dar es Salaam (UN-HABTANT,2008) and the city is one of the fastest growing cities in Africa. Informal urbanism has arguably become the new urban form for most African cities however, today’s planning visions for Dar es Salaam 2030 do not consider informal settlements and their futures.

Fragmented landscapes seek to mediate between this gap. Through drawings and photomontage visual methodology I am speculating on African spatial futurisms and how informality can contribute to the identity of future African cities. My approach begins with deconstructing the existing context, understanding, and extracting the underlying informal spatial systems to then reconstruct a speculative future. My design realisation is that of a pre-emptive approach, taking cognisance of the organic growth and self-organizing nature of informal cities – I am exploring a concept of a formal space frame which sets an urban framework allowing for the organic growth of informal public spaces . My design speculatively narrates the evolution of “Suna” the informal city and its future.