Spirits out of Trees traces richly illustrated the interwoven stories of two architectural works by Burkinabé-German architect Francis Kéré: Xylem, a contemplative pavilion nestled within the aspen groves of Tippet Rise Art Center in Fishtail, Montana, and the Naaba Belem Goumma Secondary School, built for Kérés hometown community of Gando, Burkina Faso. Though separated by geography, climate, and culture, the two buildings are united by a shared philosophy: architecture as a site of gathering, learning, and care.
The book explores how treesliteral and metaphoricalinform Kérés design language. Xylem evokes the spiritual and structural intelligence of trees, offering a space of quiet communion and passive cooling. Naaba Belem Goumma Secondary School transforms local materials into a living, breathing environment for education, shaped by and for its community.
Combining architectural documentation and photography with personal writing and original poetry, Spirits out of Trees is both a tribute to Francis Kérés vision and to the enduring metaphor of the tree, as shelter and as a symbol of regeneration. Designed with the same humility and clarity that defines Kérés work, the volume offers a deeply resonant meditation on sustainability, cultural continuity, and the power of architecture to root us more fully in the world around us.
