The Economist does an excellent job of highlighting the issues currently faced by those building US embassies. As a designer, I can’t help but be saddened by the physical presence we bring to so many countries. The problems are clear; bureaucracy surrounding the low-bid process, hyper-sensitivity to global threats, and some willingness to ignore a basic fact of foreign policy – that action speaks a lot louder than any policy document.
Imagine for a second, you are a resident of some impoverished third world metropolis. You are one of a lucky few who work hard and receive an education. You consider immigrating to another country where you can apply your skills and better your life. Will you apply for a visa at the embassy located in town, say within walking distance, maybe even within the range of what public transit there might be? Or will you apply at the embassy located 10 miles outside of town, accessible only by private vehicle? Will you be attracted to the high-profile country that exports a culture of freedom and inclusivity, but builds fortresses?
All I am going to say is this: embassies are the one component of a “national image” we can control. We can’t do a thing about the crappy reruns of Friends we export or the corporate opportunism prevalent in some place. If we are serious about creating, and leaving, a good impression on the rest of the global population, we might benefit from having our only physical presence be well-designed and more in-sync with the official dialogue.
Here are some excerpts about projects I was directly involved with:
"Thomas McCarthy of Page Southerland Page, a Texan firm which has designed 17 American diplomatic compounds, is very proud of the tributes to local tradition it incorporated into the embassy in Ouagadougou, for example, in the form of a shaded but open-air waiting area and a zigzag decorative motif..."
In Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso I developed the paving patterns based on tribal patterns and motifs. We began by looking at decorated items of cultural significance, focusing mostly on basket weave patterns. In the culture in Burkina Faso patterns woven into baskets convey a variety of meanings; this is where the design inspiration came from. Without becoming so specific that we might convey an actual meaning, intended or unintended, we developed a pattern language with the architects which was applied to the building façade and arrival plaza.
U.S. Embassy. Ouagadougou, Brukina Faso. Photos: B.L. Harbert International
“…in Kigali, excavations for the foundations unearthed human remains; in Kiev the winters are so cold that it was hard to keep the concrete from freezing; and in Monrovia an arms embargo impeded the import of the explosives needed to blast away some awkward rocks.”
Our office had a hand in all of the projects mentioned above. Needless to say, it keeps things interesting.
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