_Space-provider or invader? The identity of community built mosques in multi-cultural suburbs of Johannesburg

After the Group Areas Act of 1950 was abolished on the 5th of June 1991 in South Africa, non-white Muslims were able to reside in suburbs that were regarded previously as white only suburbs. As Muslim families moved into these suburbs, a need for local mosques to be built arose. This was to facilitate the five daily prayers and the religious education of the Muslim community. These new mosque were built in a space that previously had no Muslim presence and as such took on a far deeper meaning the historically accepted symbol of Islamic identity. Grabar (2004:40) states, “the building known as a mosque is permanently and appropriately associated with the presence of Islam”. This symbolism has not changed, however the mosque now faces the challenge of associating itself with the community it serves. This study aims to critically analyse existing mosques from the last 10 years to determine how multi-cultural communities have influenced the interior design and architectural identity of the mosques based on the challenges faced when developing the mosque. As the presence of mosques have been a key point of debate in Europe, as stated by Allievi (2010:13) “conflicts over building mosques in Europe are multiplying”, considerable research has been undertaken in that part of the world, however here in South Africa no research has been done in the field of interior design and detailing on local mosques. To identify the challenges in developing a community built mosque three case studies from locations in Johannesburg have been selected for this study. These mosques located in Greenside, Auckland Park and Houghton have been selected as they are funded by the Muslim communities they serve, were built in the last 10 years, serve Muslim communities that are fairly young and are located in suburbs that represent diverse cultural and social backgrounds. Mulugeta (2009) indicates that “since the 1994 democratic elections, affluent Muslims have increasingly been moving into formerly exclusively white neighbourhoods, where mosques were forbidden under the old system”. Three international mosques have been selected with similar criteria to that of the local case studies. This was done to assist in developing an understanding of the strategies being employed in mosque design. Through an interpretivist approach, this qualitative research aims to create a deeper understanding of the challenges that architects and designers face when designing community built mosques in Johannesburg. Qualitative research methodologies such as visual analysis and textual analysis shall be used to investigate the knowledge required. Thereafter interviews with architects and designers of mosques as well as with the mosque representatives and members of the communities surrounding the case studies will be performed to arrive at an understanding of the issues involved with the design process. The interviews will also provide information on the communities’ opinion concerning the mosque. The anticipated output from this research is to be a dissertation outlining the positive and negative aspects of concepts and techniques used in designing mosques that attempt to embrace contemporary architectural and interior design trends, yet keep an Islamic identity. This study could be of interest to architects, interior designers and local Muslim communities that are yet to build a mosque, or for communities in which mosques are already located.