Centre des Cultures et Spiritualités Ewés

The project is located in the town of Notsè in Togo, about 80km north of Lomé, the national capital. This ancient capital of the Ewé Kingdom is the origin and point of departure of the Ewé people before their exodus within Togo itself, but also to Benin and Ghana. The city is home to the Agbogbodzi Sanctuary, which houses the Ewé people's principal divinity, as well as traces of the ancient great Agbogbo wall that encircled the city.

Every first week of September since 1956, the Notsè site has become a gathering place for pilgrims of the Ewé people to celebrate the Agbogbozan festival, a festival of togetherness, fraternity and conviviality.

The masterplan proposed by Kéré Architecture is structured around the remains of the great Agbogbo wall and the Agbogbodzi Sanctuary.

The CCSE program includes a sanctuary, temples of secondary divinities, an open-air amphitheatre, a reception area, exhibition rooms, a reconstruction of the ancient royal palace of the Ewé Kingdom, an auditorium, a restaurant, and an emblematic gateway to mark the main entrance to the site.

The Agbogbodzi Sanctuary, linked to the open-air amphitheatre, embraces the heart of traditional festival celebrations.

The museum is divided into exhibition rooms and a reconstruction of the ancient Ewé Royal Palace. This unique space dedicated to history and the preservation of Ewé knowledge, it serves as a showcase for the history of the Ewé people as well as contemporary works. Thanks to the system of natural light shafts set into the ceiling, the design creates a filtered and ambient lighting effect in the exhibition rooms.

The design of the main entrance is inspired by the Ewé Stool, a royal chair that symbolises power.

The various programs are grouped together in fluid, low-rise buildings punctuated by planted patios that wind through the landscape on either side of the wall. This allows for efficient natural ventilation. The primary material used for the building is red laterite brick, which is abundantly available locally and is both durable and well-suited to the climate.

The outline of the wall on the ground traces the path of the route and is inspired by traditional Ewé paving, made from pottery shards, which is commonly found in places of worship and sacred sites.