2024

Swiss Embassy in Minsk

Creating connections between spaces, styles and states

Since 2020, Switzerland has been present in Belarus with an embassy rather than a representation. We have made this new foundation visible symbolically – but above all, aesthetically – through a new parquet. On this floor, with dark oak in the state rooms, light in the chancellery area, our carpets, tables and seating are shown in their best light. 

The leitmotif for our furnishing concept was the Belarusian colours and decoration that we had absorbed on trips and tours of the city. We played with it and created patterns for our carpets using things like stair railings and floor inlays. We have brought the strong, almost Mediterranean façade colours of churches and sports stadiums into the subdued light of the interiors and added a touch of Swissness. Each room was given its own theme colour and thus its own special atmosphere. The colour for the dining room is a mountain blue, which, when combined with the subtle red shades of the seat cushions and the dark table, creates a serene sense of peace. The red and pink of the textiles dominate the parlour, while the yellow carpet stands out in the vestibule. In offices occupied by the ambassador and her team, the colours become more subtle. Here, dark furniture on light parquet flooring against the backdrop of light-coloured walls create a relaxed working atmosphere. 

For the different seating furniture, we drew on and enhanced two of our own creations respectively. Thus, armchairs and benches from the Seley collection feature in different rooms, equipped with seat upholstery in matching colours. The salon is home to a new version of the collection that we designed for the VIP pavilion at Geneva Airport in 2018 and also features coordinated textile covers. We proposed an artistic and literary juxtaposition for the parlour: quotes from authors and poets from both countries now adorn the walls, and a selection of the finest Swiss art and architecture books promotes dialogue with the host country across all linguistic boundaries.
 

Client: Federal Office for Buildings and Logistics BBL, Bern
Engineering, project and construction management Minsk: STROYKURS, Minsk, Belarus

Furnishings: Girsberger Customized Furniture, Bützberg / horgenglarus, Glarus

Carpets: Ruckstuhl AG, Langenthal

Textiles: Création Baumann AG, Langenthal

Curtain production: Furrer Wohnen, Zurich

Lights: LichtLeuchten AG, Regensberg / Ribag AG, Safenwil 
Art concept: Dr phil. Christa Baumberger, Zurich / mille pages, Mirjam Fischer, Zurich

Photography: Yuliya Barauskas, Minsk

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