Prince.Skeletor
Don’t Be Like He-Man
It is the most expensive embassy ever constructed. But the U.S. Embassy here will exude openness, while hiding all the clever ways it defends itself from attack
After decades of building American embassies that look brutalist or bland, like obvious fortresses, the soon-to-be opened chancery in London is a crystalline cube, plopped down in the middle of a public park, without visible walls.
The building does not shout, “spies work here!” or “stand back!” even though this city has been subjected to a string of terror attacks. Instead the vibe is modernist museum, that also happens to issue visas and might have a few hidden bunkers somewhere we are not saying.
Instead of blast walls, there is a perimeter pond, with recycled water waterfalls, native hammocks and deep trenches – and on the roof arrays of solar panels that will produce enough juice to run the building and give the extra watts back to the grid.
The building sports frosted glass walkways, inspirational quotes of the Constitution, neon sculpture, reclaimed teak benches, Cornwall granite, its own subterranean wastewater treatment plant and a dozen gardens in the sky, one representing the flora of the American Midwest.There’s also a pub, a gym, a post office and a posh Marine barracks, with millionaire views all the way to Westminster for the hard-working 19-year-old lance corporals. One assumes there is a CIA station, but that was not on the tour.
New U.S. embassy in London: A $1-billion crystalline ‘sugar cube’ with a security ‘moat’
A BILLION FUKKIN DOLLARS!!!!!
After decades of building American embassies that look brutalist or bland, like obvious fortresses, the soon-to-be opened chancery in London is a crystalline cube, plopped down in the middle of a public park, without visible walls.
The building does not shout, “spies work here!” or “stand back!” even though this city has been subjected to a string of terror attacks. Instead the vibe is modernist museum, that also happens to issue visas and might have a few hidden bunkers somewhere we are not saying.
Instead of blast walls, there is a perimeter pond, with recycled water waterfalls, native hammocks and deep trenches – and on the roof arrays of solar panels that will produce enough juice to run the building and give the extra watts back to the grid.
The building sports frosted glass walkways, inspirational quotes of the Constitution, neon sculpture, reclaimed teak benches, Cornwall granite, its own subterranean wastewater treatment plant and a dozen gardens in the sky, one representing the flora of the American Midwest.There’s also a pub, a gym, a post office and a posh Marine barracks, with millionaire views all the way to Westminster for the hard-working 19-year-old lance corporals. One assumes there is a CIA station, but that was not on the tour.
New U.S. embassy in London: A $1-billion crystalline ‘sugar cube’ with a security ‘moat’
A BILLION FUKKIN DOLLARS!!!!!
important world political/financial center
