The Rwanda Scaffolding Temple

The Rwanda Scaffolding Temple

Throwback:

On a trip to Rwanda back in 2004 I came across this unusual structure, in the capital Kigali, which to me looked like a dystopian edifice one would see in a sci-fi movie. A collage of buckled corrugated metal woven between timber scaffolding rising to the sky like a temple. I had never seen timber scaffolding (or pieces of tree rather) being used on that scale before.

Little did I know when I first saw this thing that it’s actually a rain cover to protect workers building on the inside. Fractionally south of the equator, Rwanda’s relatively high altitude provides it with a remarkably pleasant tropical highland climate, albeit with a long rainy season when the rain is heavy and persistent. Hence the need to cover a building being built. Similar construction sites were covered with plastic. This one had a unique charm, and it remains a constant source of inspiration to me.