Claudia Gastrow

Claudia Gastrow, an anthropology assistant professor at North Carolina State University, discusses her book on post-war urbanism in Luanda. She delves into how aesthetics shape belonging in the city, highlighting the political implications of infrastructure and design. Gastrow reframes informal neighborhoods, or musseques, as skilled Indigenous urban formations rather than mere slums. She also reveals the struggles residents face due to violent evictions and critiques of foreign design as expressions of dissent, especially after the oil boom's collapse.

Claudia Gastrow is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Urbanism, focusing on Angolan urbanism. She discusses how Luanda’s transformation post-civil war was undermined by mass demolitions that disregarded local building traditions, known as musseques. Gastrow emphasizes how aesthetics influence belonging and political claims. She highlights critiques of the government's foreign-inspired designs as a form of dissent. The conversation also touches on the impact of oil price fluctuations and the future of urban planning in Angola.

Claudia Gastrow, an anthropologist and assistant professor at North Carolina State University, delves into the urban transformation of Luanda, Angola, after the civil war. She discusses how the post-war rebuilding efforts, fueled by oil wealth, often neglected the intrinsic value of informal neighborhoods, or musseques. Gastrow highlights the aesthetic dissent that emerged in response to government designs, framing local urbanism as a form of political critique. As she reflects on the impact of halted development projects, she raises questions about the future of these communities.