Following its unveiling last year, the Floating Music Hub, by Nigerian architect Kunlé Adeyemi and his firm NLÉ, is now complete and open for business. The project provides a novel venue for visitors to the island nation of Cape Verde to enjoy African music, dance and art.
The Floating Music Hub (aka Mansa Floating Hub) measures 779 sq m (roughly 8,400 sq ft) and is located in a sheltered marina area of Mindelo, a port city in the northern part of the island Cape Verde.
The venue consists of three anchored floating vessels which bob gently in the waves and are joined to a triangular plaza that's used as an outdoor space for events. Access comes from a wooden gangway connected to the shore.
There are a total of three A-frame buildings that host a multipurpose performance hall that can serve as a music and dance venue, art exhibition space, audiovisual screening room and more, a professional recording studio, and a bar serving food and beverages, respectively.
The project is mostly made from wood with colorful glazing helping to enliven the buildings. Structurally, it's based on a prefabricated system developed by NLÉ that makes use of local materials like timber and inexpensive plastic drums to use as floats.
So far, the system has been used to create several floating schools and other prototype structures, and it poses obvious potential for affordable architecture in developing coastal regions, providing the firm can ensure any durability concerns are addressed.
The Floating Music Hub was realized with the help of Aecom, Aister, and others, and was developed by ADS Group – Africa Development Solutions. It officially opened on August 14, and is part of a wider development push in the area.
Sources: NLÉ, Mansa Floating Hub
