Kanye West's first foray into architecture is expected to be a prefabricated concrete affordable-housing project, which has emerged a month after he announced a new arm of his Yeezy fashion label.
A rendering of the social-housing project appeared on Instagram yesterday, 3 June 2018, giving rise to suggestions that it will be the initial project from Yeezy Home – the architecture venture that the hip-hop artist and producer publicised last month with ambitions "to make the world better".
The image was released by fashion designer Jalil Peraza, who previously worked on West's DONDA label. It depicts a concrete building arranged around a courtyard, with an opening to the room in the background with a fire burning.
Peraza's caption describes it as a "low income housing scheme, made of prefabricated concrete", and credits himself and West as part of a design team that also includes Petra Kustrin, Nejc Skufca and Vadik Marmeladov.
Two more renderings of the scheme acquired by Hypebeast show the large windows to the yard bringing plenty of natural light into the interiors. Simple finishes – like white walls, exposed flooring and black window frames – are similar to the stripped-back styling of West's Yeezy fashion label.
Prefabrication would help the team construct the housing quickly and cheaply. It follows a similar strategy used by Peraza's company Face Modules, which provides prefabricated volumes for spaces, including shops, offices, and yoga and design studios.
Since establishing fame with his music, West has been vocal about his passion for architecture in interviews and on social media for many years. During a visit to Harvard Graduate School of Design in 2013, he told students that "the world can be saved through design".
Yeezy Home forms part of the Yeezy fashion company that the American rapper developed in collaboration with sportswear brand Adidas, and launched in 2015. The collections are hugely popular and usually sell out immediately.
While some have been skeptical of West's architectural expertise, "hip-hop architect" Michael Ford recently spoke to Dezeen about the importance of black musicians who promote their involvement in architecture, in improving diversity in the profession.