Doreen Adengo's work in different fields, such as architecture, art, teaching, and advocacy, shows her commitment. For example, she was recently awarded by the architecture studio Cave Bureau in Nairobi for her work in the arts and for putting current projects in a historical context.
Adesso Architecture is an office in Kampala, Uganda, that works in many different fields. She went to Yale and Catholic University for school, got her Master of Architecture from Yale, and then started her firm in her hometown. She worked in many different fields, like art, architecture, urban planning, preserving history, and furniture.
Doreen's work looks at how people who live in cities have made the most of where they live. Her work is also meant to make the city's future better. She often worked with students on her projects and let them take pictures of their city. In this way, her work helps cities in Uganda change for the better.
Doreen Adengo has worked with independent photographers to take pictures of several local buildings and write about Kampala's history. These buildings show the many different works that went into making the new state. Even though many of these buildings look alike, their histories are very different. For example, during the time of Idi Amin, a lot of Uganda's modernist architecture was destroyed. Still, this didn't mean the city had no important buildings.
Adesso worked as a conservation architect at the Uganda Museum, designed by Ernst May. She also put together a workshop on the subject of preservation. Young architects, people in museums, and those working for the Kampala City Authority all came to this workshop. It tried to get people from different fields to discuss preserving the city's history and architecture.
Doreen Adengo is an architect interested in looking at architecture from a postcolonial point of view. In 2015, she helped put together an exhibition about postcolonial identities in Africa called "African Modernism." Since the end of the 1950s, when many African countries got their independence, they have started building big buildings like stadiums, conference centers, and memorials. These buildings are great examples of modernist architecture worldwide, but they don't get enough attention in most histories.
Doreen Adengos's interest in how architecture in Kampala looks different from a postcolonial point of view is an example of this kind of work. She is currently engaged in a project with the CCA and the Mellon Foundation called Centring Africa, a collaborative project focusing on postcolonial perspectives on architecture in Africa. This project is a new way to research together, and it wants to use oral histories to tell the story of African architecture.
Aengus facilitated a workshop as part of Global Urbanism Studio 2020 in Kampala. First, students from Uganda Martyrs University and Washington University in St. Louis watched how vendors followed the rules set out by the government. Then, they tried out different ways to give vendors more freedom of action.
Doreen Adengos was so interested in postcolonial perspectives on architecture that she gave a lecture at Brown University in Kampala on the subject. Because of this, she was given a J. Carter Brown Memorial Lecture and a lecture on architecture as a way to thank her. She died on July 23, 2022, and will be buried in Atutur, Kami District, Uganda, where her ancestors lived.
Doreen Adengos's life and work cover a wide range of topics. She was born in Uganda in 1976, making her part of a new group of African architects who live and work in their hometowns and cities. She opened her own architecture firm in Kampala, Uganda, in 2005. Her mark on the field is big and will last for a long time.
She was an innovator in interdisciplinary work and was passionate about it. Her projects always posed the question of how to approach a problem effectively. Her enthusiasm, energy, and willingness to share made her a great teacher. She also encouraged others to work in different fields and try new things.
Adesso also advocated for urban communities, creating furniture and participating in urban planning. For example, the Bujuuko School is made up of three buildings that are all one story tall. Using passive design methods, these buildings have comfortable interiors in any season. This reflects how much people in the area value the outdoors.
Doreen Adengo's work looks at how people live in cities and how they think Kampala could be better in the future. She often had students help her with her projects and let them tell stories about where they lived. This made it possible for cities in Uganda to change in the future.