Both the Nakhl Fort Oasis and La Maison Tropicale operate on principles of control, imperialism and colonialism. Similarly, they attempt to maintain control over a dependent area of people.
In its African colonies, the French government aimed to assimilate the indigenous people into French culture. Public buildings and neighbourhoods erected by the French openly displayed modern architecture and industrialization to contrast existing indigenous architecture and techniques. Prefabricated housing, specifically La Maison Tropicale, was to be a visual marker of the advantages of European living and French superiority.
While La Maison Tropicale was created for control over the indigenous people, Fort Nakhl primarily controlled the land and travelers. In the harsh and brutal climate of the desert, refuge can seldom be found. The only areas that supply shade from trees and fresh water to drink are the spectacular desert oases that are located throughout the desert. These pieces of land become prime real estate in many different aspects. From travelers and Bedouins, to the locals of the area, the oases become important to everyday life. When communities develop around these oases, a need for protection and control arrives. Fort Nakhl situates itself near the oasis in Nakhl as a controlling power over the area. Trade routes that follow the desert oases pass through the Nakhl region, and so traders, travelers, and outsiders came very often. The leaders of the area established the fortification to protect the people native to the area and to regulate the use of the oasis.
Regulation was a key part of the plan developed by the French. They mandated the conversion of building techniques and architecture to those employed by the French. Through planning bylaws, the French government required that all building components used in Africa be of European manufacture. Structures not adhering to this law were deemed temporary, and therefore not representational of the future of French colonies. If the capital development of colonial Africa was to succeed and benefit the French, it was essential that colonists and Congolese no longer used local and free building materials as previously done. The French maintained complete control over building development in their colonies.
The Fort's type of control was completely non invasive and had nothing to do with hostility; the primary focus was protection and regulation of the area. The fort protected against another group invading and claiming the area as their own, and exploiting the people and the lands. In this sense, it enforced the idea of a safe life in society.
La Maison Tropicale very much represents an idea about what it meant to be human at the time. The view was that industry is capable of doing anything and should be taken advantage of in all aspects of living. Since the French African colonies did not follow this ideology and was not yet industrialized, the French insisted on changing this. La Maison Tropicale was a vessel to control this change from indigenous living to European living.
Although unconcerned with the political repercussions of La Maison Tropicale, Prouvé had larger ideas about prefabricated design. He viewed prefabrication and processes of industrialization as a means by which to provide design objects, including housing, to the masses. La Maison Tropicale can be seen as test of the legitimacy of prefabricated housing and thus for the future of housing in Europe. Prouvé inadvertently and benevolently aimed to control the European housing market as it developed industrially.
Architecture can establish control, as established by Fort Nakhl and reinforced by La Maison Tropicale. Buildings and their permanence can work as a stronghold that protects a people or an asset. They can be used as a marker of territory, the building of a fort in an area tells outsider that the land is watched over and claimed, controlled by a force. Prouvé's La Maison Tropicale supported the political agenda of the French government by acting as a giant symbol, representing industrialization, colonialism by the French, and the natives' adaption to the French ideals.
In its African colonies, the French government aimed to assimilate the indigenous people into French culture. Public buildings and neighbourhoods erected by the French openly displayed modern architecture and industrialization to contrast existing indigenous architecture and techniques. Prefabricated housing, specifically La Maison Tropicale, was to be a visual marker of the advantages of European living and French superiority.
While La Maison Tropicale was created for control over the indigenous people, Fort Nakhl primarily controlled the land and travelers. In the harsh and brutal climate of the desert, refuge can seldom be found. The only areas that supply shade from trees and fresh water to drink are the spectacular desert oases that are located throughout the desert. These pieces of land become prime real estate in many different aspects. From travelers and Bedouins, to the locals of the area, the oases become important to everyday life. When communities develop around these oases, a need for protection and control arrives. Fort Nakhl situates itself near the oasis in Nakhl as a controlling power over the area. Trade routes that follow the desert oases pass through the Nakhl region, and so traders, travelers, and outsiders came very often. The leaders of the area established the fortification to protect the people native to the area and to regulate the use of the oasis.
Regulation was a key part of the plan developed by the French. They mandated the conversion of building techniques and architecture to those employed by the French. Through planning bylaws, the French government required that all building components used in Africa be of European manufacture. Structures not adhering to this law were deemed temporary, and therefore not representational of the future of French colonies. If the capital development of colonial Africa was to succeed and benefit the French, it was essential that colonists and Congolese no longer used local and free building materials as previously done. The French maintained complete control over building development in their colonies.
The Fort's type of control was completely non invasive and had nothing to do with hostility; the primary focus was protection and regulation of the area. The fort protected against another group invading and claiming the area as their own, and exploiting the people and the lands. In this sense, it enforced the idea of a safe life in society.
La Maison Tropicale very much represents an idea about what it meant to be human at the time. The view was that industry is capable of doing anything and should be taken advantage of in all aspects of living. Since the French African colonies did not follow this ideology and was not yet industrialized, the French insisted on changing this. La Maison Tropicale was a vessel to control this change from indigenous living to European living.
Although unconcerned with the political repercussions of La Maison Tropicale, Prouvé had larger ideas about prefabricated design. He viewed prefabrication and processes of industrialization as a means by which to provide design objects, including housing, to the masses. La Maison Tropicale can be seen as test of the legitimacy of prefabricated housing and thus for the future of housing in Europe. Prouvé inadvertently and benevolently aimed to control the European housing market as it developed industrially.
Architecture can establish control, as established by Fort Nakhl and reinforced by La Maison Tropicale. Buildings and their permanence can work as a stronghold that protects a people or an asset. They can be used as a marker of territory, the building of a fort in an area tells outsider that the land is watched over and claimed, controlled by a force. Prouvé's La Maison Tropicale supported the political agenda of the French government by acting as a giant symbol, representing industrialization, colonialism by the French, and the natives' adaption to the French ideals.
-Stephanie Koltun and Dave Holborn
Information Citations:
Gentleman, Amelia. "Bullet Holes Extra" (2004).
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2004/aug/31/architecture.regeneration
(accessed January 6 2010).
"Jean Prouve's Maison Tropicale in London" (2008).
http://www.dezeen.com/2008/01/28/jean-prouves-maison-tropicale-in-london/
(accessed January 6 2010).
O'day, Kathleen. "Tropical or Colonial?" (1990).
http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-11112009-125538/unrestricted/odaythesis.pdf
(accessed January 7 2010).
Rich, Sarah. "Jean Prouve: Three Nomadic Structures" (2005).
http://www.inhabitat.com/2005/08/12/jean-prouve-three-nomadic-structures/
(accessed January 6 2010).
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