Digitizing Afro Brazilian Architectural Heritage buildings in Benin through LiDAR technology and social participation

Architectural heritage in the African context, as a domain of cultural heritage, frequently encounters substantial obstacles for conservationists and custodians due to the lack of fully documented current conditions or as-built blueprints, which serves as the initial obstacle. Most architectural heritage buildings constructed prior to and during the colonial era lack documentation; traditional heritage structures were created through generational knowledge, while colonial buildings were built using imported knowledge, which largely dissipated after independence.
The second primary difficulty is the absence of documented social narratives pertaining to these heritage buildings. Numerous heritage buildings in Africa has profound cultural significance that is gradually being eroded owing to insufficient recording. This essay will introduce a prototype project in Porto-Novo, Benin, wherein the author utilizes local social engagement and digital technologies to chronicle Afro-Brazilian or Aguda architecture, a vanishing architectural heritage in Benin. Afro-Brazilian architecture is a construction style created by formerly enslaved Africans who resettled in the Bight of Benin countries following the abolition of slavery in Brazil. This settlement developed a distinctive architectural style that amalgamated Brazilian and native African influences, particularly Yoruba, significantly affecting the urban morphology of Benin.
The project utilizes LiDAR scanning, photogrammetry, and geolocation technologies to digitize heritage structures and develop interactive immersive interfaces that facilitate engagement with and access to this valuable architectural heritage.

H. Killion Mokwete is Assistant Professor at Northeastern and UK-trained and registered Architect (RIBA-chartered Architect & Urban Designer) and Co-Founder of the community-based design startup Social Impact Collective (SIC). He teaches various design studios both at undergraduate and graduate level and is currently undertaking multidisciplinary research initiative in Benin with local historians at the Ecole du Patrimoine Africain - School of African Heritage (EPA), Benin, Porto-Novo.