LANNOO New Capital: Building Cities From Scratch

New capitals worldwide through the lens of Magnum Photography Award and World Press Photo laureate Nick Hannes With images of six new capitals in Egypt, Korea, Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Indonesia and Brazil A critical look at unbridled urban development and its social and ecological consequences ‘Gifted with a sharp eye for urban planning detail, Nick Hannes has travelled around the globe to document these cities as they stand in the early 2020s. His is a bottom-up perspective, juxtaposing starchitecture with the lives of those struggling to make a life in new capital cities.’ ― Dorina Pojani in the book introduction What does the ideal capital look like? Photographer Nick Hannes travelled to six countries – Egypt, Korea, Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Indonesia and Brazil – that have recently built a new capital or are in the process of doing so. Each and every one of them is a typical example of what Rem Koolhaas calls the Generic City: a planned city without historical layers, local identity, or its own character. As a visual sociologist with a sharp eye for detail, Hannes searches for the human dimension in a setting full of spectacular architecture and pompous prestige projects. New Capital is a critical reflection on unbridled neoliberal urban development and its social and ecological consequences, but is also peppered with subtle humour and surprising coincidences. Meandering between pride and sadness, New Capital shows how utopia and dystopia are sometimes surprisingly close.