The Masterplan

When asked to design the capital of a young African republic, Rodrigo Tomás sees the opportunity of a lifetime. Eager to outshine his famous father he accepts, but he soon discovers that not all is what it seems… Chronicling the trajectory of an architect craving recognition, The Masterplan delivers a fictional reconstruction of an architectural dream blown to dust by bigger forces. A personal story comes to reveal a larger story – of an emerging nation’s struggle with colonial residue, the growing Chinese influence in Africa, and the fraught workings of a global real estate market.

Reinier de Graaf is a Dutch architect, architectural theorist, urbanist, and writer. He is a Partner of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture, founded by Rem Koolhaas, and author of the book Four Walls and a Roof: The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession.