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Nestled in the dense neighborhood of Osu in Accra, Ghana, the Backyard Community Club, designed by local practice DeRoche Projects, is a youth-focused community and sports facility. Centered around a single clay tennis court, the club includes changing rooms, built-in seating, and an herb garden. A sculptural enclosure of 33 wedge-shaped rammed-earth walls—each 13 feet in height—surrounds the playing area, offering views to passersby, shading spectators, and minimizing crosswind during matches. Rammed-earth construction can be slow and tedious, as well as easily disrupted by weather, but these walls were prefabricated off-site. This approach allowed the simultaneous pouring of the club’s concrete plinth and sheltered casting of its earthen elements, shortening on-site installation to about 12 days.

Photo © Julien Lanoo

Photo © Julien Lanoo