Embassy of New Nations

Abstract

As the world becomes both more urbanized and both natural and man-made threats increase there is a growing concern for the resiliency of cities. How can a city adapt to absorb and recover from shocks? Public places today are threatened by the existence of terror attacks that result in unprecedented levels of destruction. The recent terror attacks in Paris, Berlin, and London have illustrated the disastrous effects of failing to adequately safeguard our public spaces. The concept for an embassy that is designed not for one nation but for any number of potentially new ones created the opportunity to look at how the building type and technologies could play a larger role in the development of an architecture of defensive resiliency in an urban context. The design of this embassy undertook the challenges associated with the creation of a safe public space integrating with a highly secure facility. By challenging material assumptions and looking toward the present future of material science in the built environment this project sought to establish a new way of implementing a protected structure. This project exposes how current material developments can change how we perceive security in architecture. Defensive structures do not need to present themselves as fortresses within the city, but can be inviting and open.