Studio Introduction
Following World War II, the United States took a leading role in forming institutions of internationalist governance, most notably the United Nations and NATO. Architecture also played a powerful symbolic role in the United States’s relationship to the rest of the world through the design of embassies and consulates. For those hoping to visit or immigrate to the US, these buildings were the initial points of contact with the United States. As loci of international engagement, they strove to project power, but also democratic ideals, even when US political actions abroad contradicted those ideals. The takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979 exposed the vulnerabilities of the embassy and US power abroad. Consequently, security became the imperative starting point of design.
The contemporary US embassy is an incredibly complex design problem of negotiating contradictions: Security and openness. Being part of a local context while projecting American values. Acting as a portal and as a gatekeeper. The rise of US nativism only underscores these contradictions and the fragility of democracy and international alliances.
Studio Project
This semester we will explore these complexities through the design of the new US Embassy in Brussels, an actual project presently in the early design stages. While the embassy will house the US embassy to Belgium, it will also support the missions to the EU and NATO, two alliances facing their own moments of crises and tenuous relationships with the US. The project is sited in central Brussels and will thus be very much a part of the city. The building will be about 400,000sf and because of site constraints, will need take the form of a small tower.
This will be a challenging building project to undertake, so the studio will be run to prioritize arriving at a well-formulated and articulated result. While pairs are encouraged, there will be an opportunity to choose to complete final projects individually before the midterm review. We will benefit greatly from a close partnership with the Overseas Building Operations division of the State Department. Our partners there, Ted Brady and Frank Lupo, are both YSoA alums who bring great knowledge and experience along with an understanding of the rich lines of inquiry that open when undertaking such a project in an academic environment.
Studio Travel
During travel week, the studio will travel to Brussels. Thanks to government access, we will meet with the current US delegation to Brussels, folks at NATO and at the EU. We will visit their offices and get to know the multiple parts of this puzzle of a building project. We will also have time to explore the architecture and urbanity of Brussels and potentially Bruges, Ghent, and/or Antwerp, none more than a ninety-minute train ride away.