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Asmara’s Fabulous Art Deco
Most African cities can be dangerous after dark; some are perilous even by day. This is simply not true for Asmara, the capital of Eritrea, which proves most convenient to walk safely throughout the city to marvel at the heritage of great buildings left over from Italian colonization. Asmara is one of the most beautiful and most architecturally alluring places on the continent. It holds an amazing surprise - a city envisaged by Mussolini's architects in the 1930s as a Modernist experiment, with wide streets and bold, beautiful buildings. There are graceful villas that seem to come straight from an Italian hilltop, wonderful Art Deco factories and warehouses, and monumental Italian-fascist government offices.
When Italy occupied Eritrea, Asmara was made the colony’s capital city. The Italians built roads, constructed beautiful residences, government buildings, administration offices, and cultural centers, transferring Asmara into one of the most modern cities in Africa. The policy of Italian expansionism towards Ethiopia using Eritrea as a spearhead, as well as the influx of many Italian colonialists and military personal, quickened the development of the city. With the defeat of the Italians by the Allies, and with the occupation of the British, the development of the city was culminated. During the struggle for liberation, the city was even turned into a “ghost city” but fortunately, it was undamaged by war unlike many Eritrean towns.
When visiting Asmara, begin in the central market, framed by its delicate arches. Pick up some fruit or pungent Eritrean spices and wander through the back lanes toward the Catholic cathedral, an imposing red-brick edifice that dominates the skyline right in the center of Liberation Avenue, Asmara’s main street. There you will find the gorgeous Art Deco Cinema Impero, a rather extraordinary cinema painted in a rich earthy red. The front is decorated with what looks like huge radio buttons. In the 1930s, cinemagoers must have felt they were not only entering a palace of entertainment, but an actual entertainment machine. Alongside Cinema Impero, there are a number of Italian-style cafés where old men sip their cappuccinos and macchiatos.
Another favorite Art Deco building is on the end of Sematat Avenue (right after Liberation Avenue). The fantastic Fiat Tagliero has long horizontal overhangs that extend out like giant wings. Built as a garage in 1938 by architect Giuseppe Pettazzi, Fiat Tagliero once pumped petrol in the most dramatic of settings: beneath two vast concrete wings, each nearly 30 meters (96ft) long, jutting out from the garage's central building. Legend has it that at the time no one believed they would stay up unsupported. Pettazzi put a gun to his own head to force his workers to knock away the removable pillars under the wings. The wings are still standing on a building that looks more like an airplane than a petrol station. Visit the Tagliero at six in the evening as it turns a golden color against the deep blue evening sky and, possibly for the only time in your life, a garage will leave you breathless.
The more you walk, the more you'll see. This is the miracle of art deco Asmara. Despite the passing of time and a 30 year war of independence, its architectural heritage has remained untouched. |
