In Kazanchis, a neighborhood of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia that was once rich with music houses, a new Grand Fendika Cultural Center is rising. The original Fendika venue was demolished in 2024, and the replacement—led by contemporary performer Melaku Belay and designed by CRA–Carlo Ratti Associati—aims to become a lasting hub for Ethiopia’s traditional and experimental arts.
The new Fendika occupies four stories dedicated to performance, education and community activities, linked by a gently sloping ramp that connects a street-level courtyard to a rooftop stage. The guiding principle is straightforward: keep the doors open, invite the city in, and ensure the future feels rooted in local life.
The project grew out of collaboration with Fendika’s local and international communities and was made possible with financial support from TrustAfrica. It builds on decades of grassroots efforts to sustain indigenous Ethiopian performance traditions amid rapid urban change.
© Carlo Ratti Associati
The design deliberately opens the building to its surroundings, with porous boundaries that let music spill into the street and wide, street-facing windows that offer glimpses of activity. The new center returns to the site of the original venue and combines a hotel with cultural spaces under one roof, creating a mixed-use presence that anchors the neighborhood.
While the new Grand Fendika is completed, Hyatt Regency Addis Ababa in Meskel Square has provided temporary space for musical events, effectively serving as a temporary Fendika.
Kazanchis was once dotted with informal venues known as azmari bets, where musicians and poets improvised songs and verses. Most of those spaces have disappeared in the past decade as rapid residential and commercial development reshaped the area. The original Fendika, the last of its kind locally, was revived by Melaku Belay in 2008. Under his leadership it evolved from a tip-based, traditional performance space into a salaried cultural institution that also presents visual art exhibitions, literature readings and community education. Over time Fendika has received international recognition, including the Prince Claus Award, the European Union Schuman Award, a Star of Italy Medal and a French Medal for Arts and Letters.
© Carlo Ratti Associati
In 2024, plans to redevelop Fendika’s site put its future at risk. Recognizing the venue’s cultural value, the Addis Ababa Municipality and Mayor Adanech Abebe intervened to support its continuation. The city offered Melaku Belay the chance to remain on site and rebuild, encouraging a proposal that fits the municipality’s vision for the neighborhood while preserving Fendika’s community role.
The new building translates Fendika’s deep community ties into a physical form that starts at the street. A gently sloping stair-ramp rising to a rooftop terrace threads through performance halls, classrooms, rehearsal studios, artist residences, archives, a café and an open-air stage. Double-height volumes and interlocking staircases connect the four levels so visitors can move seamlessly between spaces while always remaining near sound and activity. Balconies and landings create places to pause and watch, blurring the line between formal programming and everyday life.
© Carlo Ratti Associati
“CRA–Carlo Ratti Associati’s design for Grand Fendika is wonderful news for Fendika supporters from all over the world,” said Melaku Belay. “Carlo Ratti and his team understand Fendika’s ethos of bringing people and communities together through the arts. This collaboration will help take our work to the next level and contribute to the vibrant vision for Addis Ababa that Mayor Adanech Abebe and her team are advancing.”