Between the pleats

Project idea

The Czech Embassy complex in Addis Ababa will be a business card of the Czech Republic. Its mission will be primarily to express the cultural level of the state and the traditions of Czech architecture within the European and the world context of cultural heritage. It will be a place where foreigners can lean basic information about the history of the Czech Republic, culture and economy.
Czech traditional clothing expresses Czech history relative to Czech culture and behavior. The Czech skirt “sukne” served as a source of inspiration in design of the building. The folk skirt is unusually wide, with a great number (up to 24) of underskirts.
The structure of the folk skirt was interpreted in to the modules and the "pleats" that connect between them. Like the skirt, the structure of the building has several layers that allow different levels of transparency. The "pleats" of the building allow natural light to enter, open the views and serve as the paths. The first layer of the building creates spaces for different purposes, for instance - private gardens, sunscreens and technical spaces.
Transparency of the layers depends on the functions, for instance- private zones more opaque and public zones more transparent.

Project description

The structure of the building is a lightweight structure. The main material of the building is polycarbonate- strong, stiff, hard, thermally resistant and environment friendly and can be recycled.
The embassy complex consists from: representative embassy building, office buildings, consular and visa buildings, ambassador’s residence, residential buildings of embassy staff and residential buildings for local work force.
The complex has 2 entrances: through the representative embassy building (for embassy stuff and ambassador) and through consular and visa building (for local workforce and guests).
The private zones such as ambassador's residence and residential buildings of embassy staff situate on the lower level to prove the privacy. Such artificial topography emphasize the concept idea of the "pleats".

Technical information

Ground floor:
1-Office A
-Office 16 sqm (3)
-Secretariat 25 sqm (1)
-Office 20 sqm (1)
-Meeting room 30 sqm (1)

2-Office B
-Office 25 sqm (1)
-Office 16 sqm (1)
-WC 6 sqm (1)
-Cleaning chamber 6 sqm (1)

3-Office C
-Office 20 sqm (1)
-WC 6 sqm (1)
-Tea kitchen 6 sqm (1)
-Cleaning chamber 6 sqm (1)
-Office without windows 20 sqm (1)

4-Office D
-Office 16 sqm (2)
-Office 15 sqm (1)
-Tea kitchen 6 sqm (1)
Room with copier 9 sqm (1)

5-Official part of embassy building
-Entrance hall 19 sqm (1)
-Meeting room 16 sqm (2)
-WC 6 sqm (1)
-Entrance hall 40 sqm (1)
-Lounge 20 sqm (2)
-Cloakroom 9 sqm (1)
-Office 9 sqm (1)
-Assembly room 180 sqm (1)

6-Residential building of embassy staff 1
-Appartment 55 sqm (1)
-Appartment 75 sqm (1)
-Storeroom 6 sqm (3)

7-Residential building of embassy staff 2
-Appartment 95 sqm (1)
-Appartment 55 sqm (1)
-Courier flat 25 sqm (1)
-Storeroom 6 sqm (1)

8-Visa building
-Entrance hall 29 sqm (1)
-Meeting room 16 sqm (2)

9-Consular building
-Office 16 sqm (3)
-Office 12 sqm (2)
-WC 12 sqm (1)

10-Ambassador’s residence
-Entrance hall rep. 29 sqm (1)
-Cloakroom 10 sqm (1)
-WC 12 sqm (1)
-Dining room rep. 36 sqm (1)
-Lounge rep. 25 sqm
-Dining+Lounge 60 sqm (1)
-Kitchen 18 sqm (1)
-Office 9 sqm (1)
-WC 22 sqm (1)

First floor:
1-Office A
-Office 16 sqm (2)
-Office 25 sqm (1)
-Office 28 sqm (1)
-Mail room 20 sqm (1)
-WC 8 sqm (1)

2-Office
-Office 25 sqm (1)
-Secretariat 25 sqm (1)

3-Official part of embassy building
-Dining room 56 sqm (1)
-Kitchen 30 sqm (1)
-Lounge 20 sqm (1)

4-Residential building of embassy staff 1
-Appartment 75 sqm (2)
-Storeroom 6 sqm (1)

5-Residential building of embassy staff 2
-Appartment 95 sqm (1)
-Appartment 55 sqm (1)
-Courier flat 25 sqm (1)
-Storeroom 6 sqm (1)

6-Ambassador’s residence
-Room 20 sqm (3)
-Guest room 25 sqm (1)
-WC 22 sqm (1)