Djamaa El Djazair a new ideological dimension for the Bay of Algiers

Abstract

The Djamaà El Djazaïr mosque is one of the emblematic projects on the
Bay of Algiers: a project which illustrates how politicians have recourse to
projects of prestige to affirm their ideology and influence how the city’s
identity is formed. Like other grand projects across the world such as the
Louvre museum in Paris, the Hassan II mosque in Casablanca and the
Capital Gate tower in Abu Dhabi, this project is part of a quite recurrent
practice of politicians who aspire to a certain longevity and an affirmation
of their role as creators of new icons.

The legitimacy of Djamaà El Djazaïr comes from its pretention to reflect
a certain national identity in a globalised postmodern world, where more
than ever image and communication are at the core of forming identities.
It illustrates the unease that characterises North African societies today as
they search for a certain authenticity which was for a long time jeopardised
by successive colonisations as well as by socio-economic and political
imbalance.
Indeed, as an inescapable element of the urban landscape in the land of
Islam, the mosque, by its architecture, constitutes a means of expressing
the evolution of local cultural identities. The Djamaà El Djazaïr project
then is an opportunity to produce an original work, the expression of a
reappropriated cultural identity. This article will investigate the context
of the emergence of the project, identify the stakes and the impact on a
territory which is itself emblematic, the Bay of Algiers.