Brazilian Embassy
Studio: Ipiña+Nieto Arquitectos + Ossa Arquitectura
Project: Brazilian Embassy
Location: Santiago de Chile, Chile
Year: 2017
Category: Re-thinking
Credit: Pablo Casals Aguirre
In 1872, Eusebio Chelli was appointed to build the “Palacio Errázuriz”.
In 1941, the Brazilian Government acquired it to be the Ambassador’s Residence. Brazil then decides to construct there a new building to house the Embassy. Later on, they built a new volume in 1971.
In a first visit, we could understand that the absence of hierarchy was evident, thus resting importance to all buildings, mixing the original design with the copy, the historic with the new, and the private with the public. Then our project was focused on tracing a thin line that made the diplomatic offices clearly independent from the Ambassador’s Residence, the “Palacio” from the Embassy. This will clearly show the visitor which is the relevant and historic building.
So, the project is articulated with a wooden skin that unifies the new volumes. This skin maintains a rhythm and separation between elements allowing an interior/exterior connection, marking the public aspect of the offices and making independent the private residence. The wooden skin runs along the different volumes overlooking the Palacio and gradually separates from the façade to colonize some garden areas to be offered to the interior.