A view of the city and its creative transformative potentials
Lucai Babina and Marilyn Douala Bell
Douala, the economic and cultural capital of Cameroon, is one of the most important cities in Central Africa. Informal settlements, micro-economies and spontaneous use of the public space have a primary role in the formation of its urban identity.
This fast growing city is the context in which doual’art, a research centre of urban practices, has been operating for more than 16 years. Since 1991 the co-founders, Marilyn Douala Bell and Didier Schaub have fostered cultural projects and commissioned site-specific art interventions, using art and culture to develop collective processes of urban change.
This publication brings together cross-disciplinary analyses of Douala that seek to go beyond predictable and prejudicial views about African towns. Douala becomes a thrilling case study in which artistic practices engage and affect the cityscape.
With contributions by: Lucia Babina, Edgar Cleijne, Marilyn Douala Bell, Emiliano Gandolfi, Christian Hanussek, Salifou Lindou, Dominique Malaquais, Lionel Manga, Nsame Mbongo, Zayd Minty, Giulia Paoletti, Iolanda Pensa, Didier Schaub, AbdouMaliq Simone, Kamiel Verschuren, Alexander Vollebregt, Silvia Viganò and Hervé Yamguen.
The book has been Awarded Best Dutch Book Design 2007.