Worofila
Dakar, Senegal
Founded in 2019 by Nzinga B. Mboup and Nicolas Rondet, Worofila is a Dakar-based studio specializing in bioclimatic architecture. Their work integrates passive design strategies and locally sourced materials—raw earth bricks, vegetation, and typha—to create climate-responsive buildings. Projects range from residential to institutional, including the TER stations, the French Institute’s garden and gallery, the Vertical House in Ngor, and the Sendou Home. Upcoming works include the Rainforest Gallery in Benin City, built using traditional cob construction from the ancient Benin Kingdom, and Labo x Fou, a training center for sustainable construction in Sebikotane. Worofila’s approach reconnects with ancestral building techniques and emphasizes low-tech, resource-conscious methods relevant to the climate crisis.
2025 Biennial Project
Project Overview
Cob: The architecture of in(ter)dependence
The project presents a documentary film showing the construction of a cob wall pavilion in Senegal, following the design originally intended for Chicago. The pavilion—a curved bench and curved wall—is built collectively over five weeks, one layer per week, highlighting the hand-powered processes and plasticity of cob wall construction. The film traces the harvesting of local clay, stone, and typha, and the collaborative fabrication of the walls, illustrating principles of low-tech building, community participation, and material reuse. The installation invites visitors to rethink their relationship with architecture, emphasizing accessible skills, collective creation, and the use of local materials for sustainable, inclusive design.
Venue
View more840 N. Michigan Ave
Address
840 N. Michigan Ave
Description
The Biennial expands its footprint downtown with the opening of its fifth site at 840 N. Michigan Avenue, transforming more than 65,000 square feet of space on the Magnificent Mile into a dynamic hub for art, design, and dialogue.
