About Us

Studio NEiDA is an interdisciplinary architecture, design, curatorial and research practice based between West Africa and Europe. It was co-founded by the architect Jeanne Autran-Edorh and the curator and writer Fabiola Büchele who met in 2019 while working at Studio Francis Kéré.

With a collaborative approach, Studio NEiDA does architecture, scenography, interior design, curation, writing and communication strategy with a focus on afrocentricity, inclusivity and craft. Temporary or permanent. New built or refurbished. The work is committed to equitable processes, usage and management of resources.

Currently Studio NEiDA is applying their methodology and design language to several projects including The Falcon, a purpose-built independent cinema and community space in Ghana, a stage design for the Nigerian musician Wayne Snow and the showroom and branding strategy for menswear designer Artfrogentleman in Togo.

When creating architectural concepts, Studio NEiDA designs buildings of and for their context, guided by local resources, materials and crafts. As showcased in the recently completed Adakpame Guesthouse in Lomé that features raw clay brick walls and bespoke wooden door frames.

When realising communication strategies and exhibition projects, Studio NEiDA seeks close collaborations with their partners and follows the process from conception to implementation. As can be seen in the branding and PR strategies for contemporary artist Manon Malan and light designer dipol.

Prior to launching Studio NEiDA, its founders served as the Lead Design Architect and Creative Director of Studio Francis Kéré, during the firm’s Pritzker Prize-winning tenure. They led projects including the National Assembly of Benin, the urban design scheme for Niamey, the Goethe Institut in Dakar, the Memorial Thomas Sankara in Ouagadougou, Chalet Africa in Gstaad, Counteract for the Venice Biennale Architettura 2023 by Lesley Lokko, the co-curation of the 23 International Exhibition at the Triennale in Milan, Arbre à Palabres at AEDES in Berlin and Momentum of Light for Zumtobel Group.

Underpinning Studio NEiDA’s work is a teaching and research practice that trains an afrocentric lens on the public and academic discourse around ancient and modern heritage as well as contemporary practices in architecture. As part of a SOAS-led initiative, they are currently conducting research in Lomé about the formal and informal repurposing of abandoned colonial and post-colonial buildings and the role this plays in the building of a national identity.

Studio NEiDA works in English, French and German. 

In the press
 

11.12.2024
“French-Togolese architect Jeanne Autran-Edorh and Austrian writer Fabiola Büchele partnered with the state-owned cultural institute Palais de Lomé to curate the two-day event that kicked it all off. The co-founders of architecture and research practice Studio NEiDA centred discussions around the conservation and ongoing transformation of the region’s built environment. "It seemed to us that these two things – conservation and transformation – are the dual forces that are happening at the moment in architecture here," Büchele says. Autran-Edorh and Büchele were keen to shape an event in Togo that captured period-defining contemporary themes. "People are trying to conserve things that are traditional and ancient, and have often been forgotten and have often been dismissed, not least because during colonial times, these things were not valued. But at the same time, there's a lot of transformation happening." Meanwhile, a photography exhibition within the galleries of Palais de Lomé, showcasing some of Togo’s most widely known architecture serves as a souvenir of the entire event. Hung across two rooms, the show will remain at the institute until March 2025, tracing design histories in Togo and broadening the scope of how we think about West African architecture.” 
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‍‘Architecture Encounters’ traces period-defining built environment stories in Togo and West Africa? by Ijeoma Ndukwe for Wallpaper Magazine

‍23.04.2024
“Interdisciplinary practices such as Studio Neida, led by architect Jeanne Autran-Edorh and curator and writer Fabiola Büchele, have worked on interesting collaborations in the metaverse that blend music and design. Their project Snow Dome, created for neo-soul musician Wayne Snow, visualizes the artist’s transcendent soundscapes to create an immersive and interactive experience that couldn’t be achieved in the real world.”
‍Can the Metaverse help architecture break free of real-world constraints? by Shawn Adams for Frame Magazine

Competitions

2024
Finalist Experimental Fellowship at Bauhaus Earth with the project "Béhô -Exploring the palm roof structures tradition in the Gulf of Benin coastal region.

‍Winner of GAIIA (German-African Innovation Incentive Award) trophy competition by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry