Msoma Architects is a London and Nairobi–based practice exploring how architecture can meaningfully engage with cultural identity, migration and environmental responsibility. The practice takes its name from the Swahili word msoma meaning reader – reflecting an approach in which observing, listening and learning form the basis of design. Architecture is treated as an interpretive discipline: a reading of place, history, materials and social conditions before any proposition is made. Founded and directed by Bushra Mohamed, the practice draws on her cross-disciplinary research and teaching, as well as her long-standing interest in how diasporic experiences reshape contemporary life. Her work is informed by academic inquiry and by practice-based engagement; this dual perspective anchors the studio’s commitment to clarity, rigour and cultural attunement.
The studio’s design method combines inquiry into decolonisation and decarbonisation, recognising that sustainability is inseparable from questions of social equity. Rather than seeking stylistic uniformity, Msoma works through the productive tensions of hybrid architectural languages. The practice sees coherence not as sameness, but as the thoughtful synthesis of diverse sources - materials, climates and cultural forms - into spaces that serve contemporary needs while acknowledging wider histories. Msoma’s projects range from housing, public space and cultural buildings to exhibitions for institutions such as the Venice Biennale, the V&A, the Design Museum and Somerset House. The practice’s current research includes a study of African housing typologies, the compound house, which examines how vernacular logics might inform equitable models of future urban dwelling. Msoma Architects were shortlisted as the Dezeen Emerging architect of the Year 2023. Bushra Mohamed also contributes to architectural culture through teaching at UK universities including The University of Cambridge and Kingston University and writing for journals including AA Files, The Architectural Review and the RIBA Journal.