La Reserve, a hotel resort situated on the outskirts of Dakar, was Highly Commended in the Leisure Led Development – Future Project category at The World Architecture Festival (WAF) 2021.
WAF is the largest interactive global architectural awards programme and festival, and due to COVID-19, a digital event was held this year between 1-3 December. 496 projects from 62 countries were shortlisted across completed buildings, future projects and landscape categories.
La Reserve is situated in a semi-arid landscape interspersed with Baobabs on the outskirts of Dakar. The precise location of the Baobabs played an integral role in the masterplan design, along with the positioning of key buildings on-site to create a dynamic and poetic relationship between these colossal trees and the resultant architecture.
“All the buildings share a common thread in that the same themes underpin them, that being an architecture that is very closely associated with the site via the use of natural materials,” explains Phillippe Fouché, Director at SAOTA. “This creates an architecture that is rooted in place, that not only respects its surroundings but elevates it and promotes a closer connection to the landscape.”
