Off the Beaten Track

Nina Maritz architects operates from Windhoek, Namibia and is one of the leading architects of the African continent. Namibia is a country with socio-economic challenges, but also of great richness in its natural environment and landscape. This combination urges careful deployment of funding to achieve as much as possible out of limited means without wasting resources. Nina Maritz addresses this challenge by working with materials in nnovative ways, exploiting their natural textures and colors. The places she designs – be they schools, courthouses or libraries – are given meaning and impact for indigenous communities, as their local materials and their own local craftsmanship are key to the design and realization. This contextual approach results in climate-adaptive buildings with a small ecologic footprint. Moreover, it is geared at capacity building and emancipation of local communities. The resulting architecture is native, earthly and at the same time narrative and full of meaning. The capitalization of this local knowledge and skills truly place the architecture of Maritz outside of the trodden paths of global, digitalized culture.

From another point of view, the natural richness of Namibia makes it a destination for ecotourism, where travelers come to experience what remains of the beauty of the wilderness. Maritz has directed her design research at reduction of the (ecologic) footprint of tourism in the great natural conservancies, heritage sites and national parks. The Shipwreck Lodges in Skeleton Coast National Park (2018) have almost zero environmental impact. Twyfelfontein Visitors’ Centre (2006) is an architectural translation of the local landscape and of (lost) immaterial heritage of making prehistoric rock art, safeguarding and extending its authenticity into the present.

Nina Maritz is a graduate of the University of Cape Town (South Africa) and settled in Namibia in 1992. She started her own practice in the Namibian capital Windhoek in 1998 to focus on contextual response, sustainability and community development. She’s lectured at institutes like the University of Oregon, Namibia University of Science and Technology, and Namibia Polytechnic.