CDLE Building Nelson Mandela

Being able to freely express our opinions is something that has always been fought for. With the use of social networks, freedom of expression has acquired unique opportunities, which in other times were unimaginable. Now an opinion can quickly transcend the world, although the battle against censorship seems to have no end.

The Nelson Mandela House is a space for education and training in matters of freedom, equality and non-discrimination. The design of the building was based on flexibility, to create open spaces that can be adapted to various uses and allow free access by users.

The ground floor is almost an extension of the central courtyard, with spaces that can be opened or closed as the program requires, while on the upper floor the volume is closed to strengthen the sense of learning and protect it from the outside, making knowledge the greatest treasure of this foundation.

This set of institutions was transformed into a small world that fights for peace through the integration of diverse typologies and ideas. Formally, they make use of the same materiality to remain silent and gain more freedom, but also, as historian Garton Ash says, better freedom of expression.