Cinema Impero’s Art Deco Facade

The story behind the place

Cinema Impero stands on Harnet Avenue in Asmara. The state’s World Heritage nomination records Mario Messina’s1937 design and explains that the built complex was more modest than the original proposal. Its street facade is still distinctive: three pale vertical panels combine strip windows with rows of circular lights, while the cinema’s name runs down either side. The building belongs to the city’s colonial history and its later life as an Eritrean urban landmark.

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