The American embassy, celebrated as an architectural marvel, lately found its residence in Ballsbridge recognised as an archetypal piece of architecture which is immediately identifiable from its cylindrical construction at the crux of Elgin and Pembroke Road. It certainly achieves a prominent classification amidst the modernist architectural works of the 20th century in Dublin. This praise follows the recent decision of US Ambassador to Ireland, Claire Cronin, to contract with developer Joe O’Reilly from Chartered Land this past January. The deal involved the acquisition of the former Jurys Hotel proximate to the embassy for €152 million, conditional upon the clearance of its four-acre plot to pave way for the construction of a new embassy precinct. A design has not yet been decided upon and planning permission is also a prerequisite.
Despite the existing embassy maintaining its modern façade, it is astoundingly now 60 years old and has regrettably become insufficient in size. Ambassador Cronin has openly declared that their current historic domicile has been outgrown but aspires that the future embassy will symbolize “a beacon for future generations” yearning to augment the currently thriving alliance between the US and Ireland.
The American architect beholding an astute mind, John MacLane Johansen, honed his craft in the creation of the Elgin Road edifice, and was present at its premiere on May 23rd, 1964. Esteemed attendees included President Éamon de Valera, the Taoiseach Seán Lemass, government officials, and members of the diplomatic unit. Fractions of Johansen’s memories recall the event as a “free whiskey party for some 300 tipsy Dubliners”.
The welcoming embrace of American culture by Ireland, through riveting Hollywood films, the influential Elvis Presley, and US sitcoms broadcasted via RTÉ noticeably established by the time the gleaming new, representative symbol of modernity in Ballsbridge was erected; this was in the time where structures like Liberty Hall and O’Connell Bridge House were still undergoing construction.
Harvard alumnus Johansen, who landed the embassy project commission in 1956, explored an array of plan designs like an octagon for the complex triangular location, which was once inhabited by two impressive Victorian houses. His final choice was a circular layout that did not shun anyone but rather was a reflection of historically symbolic ring forts and Martello towers.
During a 2001 interview, conducted by Shane O’Toole, a renowned architectural historian, at Johansen’s vintage Manhattan office, Johansen shared that he designed a new model of a traditional rotunda structure with a fenced exterior in Neo-Renaissance style, keeping it non-aggressive and diplomatic. The project was nearly scrapped after an influential Irish-American representative labelled Ballsbridge, the proposed location, as a ghetto. Nonetheless, in 1961, the blueprint was presented to John F Kennedy, the then newly-appointed US president, who confirmed and issued the cylindrical format’s construction.
Johansen held the view that architects should embrace and judiciously apply emerging technologies to buildings, enhancing their symbolic potential and bestowing them with poetic expressions. He exemplified these principles through his work in Ballsbridge which resulted in a landmark postwar modern architectural workpiece, according to Shane O’Toole.
In More Than Concrete Blocks Volume II, his examination of the US embassy outlines how Johansen employed advanced precast concrete technology to its threshold, sculpting a facade with 1,600 precast pieces covered in renewed limestone, fabricated by the pioneering Dutch firm, Schokbeton.
Transported from Rotterdam to Dublin using barges, the uniquely intricate 3D designs were crafted decades before computer-aided design’s inception. These designs were flawless, showcasing not just artistic aspiration but also the meticulousness with which they were compiled like puzzle pieces by G&T Crampton’s contractors, under Michael Scott, the project’s chief architect’s attentive gaze.
Schokbeton, literally translating to “shocked concrete”, provided the load-bearing components for the higher three floors of the embassy building. These components, accompanied by bronze-framed windows and French doors over a dual basement enveloped in rough-hewn granite, was topped with precast concrete flooring slabs tinted by Connemara’s green marble terrazzo.
Offices that have the shape of a wedge were strategically placed along corridors that peer out to the overhead-lit atrium that spans 15 metres. The atrium, rather popularly referred to as the rotunda by embassy staff, initially held social functions and served as a reception area until safety matters took precedence; it saw a rush of people in 1970 for the moon-rock exhibition.
During the olden days, the embassy had no railings but a dry moat filled with blooming shrubs, crossed by two footbridges leading to the entrances on both sides. Interestingly, despite being technically U.S territory, the plaza surrounding the building was public space – it turned into a common gathering spot for anti-Vietnam War demonstrations in the late 1960s.
The embassy designed by Johansen earned an incredible amount of accolades for its modern architectural designs. As aptly put by O’Toole, “it outshone every Dublin building of its era in gaining domestic and international recognition”. Time magazine painted the embassy as progressive in design and understood the essence of the nation it was built to be a friend to.
The An Taisce, Ireland’s National Trust, also commended the embassy for its efficient utilisation of a main city approach corner site and its respect for existing environmental scale and character, without mimicking surrounding buildings, and for seamlessly blending with existing trees and street settings.
According to O’Toole, despite being built with an unconventional concept and design, Johansen’s US embassy in Dublin successfully stood the test of time and served as a potent symbol of John F Kennedy’s ‘Camelot’ and mid-century American architecture’s golden era, where the United States was perceived as the ideal model by most of the western world.
In 2014, the embassy’s golden jubilee was celebrated with an exhibition at the Irish Architectural Archive that displayed copies of Johansen’s complex building sketches and contemporary photos by Norman McGrath. An upcoming book by Dublin-based architect Cormac Murray titled “America at Home” is slated to commemorate its 60th anniversary.
It is regrettable that the 1983 Islamic Jihad suicide bombing at the Beirut US embassy, which claimed 63 lives, necessitated enhanced security measures. The US states department issued a directive mandating all its embassies to urgently improve their physical security measures. In response, Dublin’s embassy reinforced its own security by enclosing its plaza with concrete bollards.
In 1988, the embassy secured planning approval to fix metal fences atop granite bases around the premises, a measure they claimed was an essential response to the increase in global terrorism. The arrangement mirrored that of Trinity College Dublin’s Nassau Street border. As well as this, a somewhat imposing “security booth” was added to the crest of the site several years later.
New alterations also included the replacement of the original “drawbridges” with two curved ramps and a new basement-level staff entrance. Fleeton Watson, a concrete specialist from Baldoyle, performed subtle repairs on certain aspects of the building’s exterior, and a silvery-blue film was applied to the windows for improved privacy.
In 2010, the embassy found its place in a compilation of Dublin’s 20th-century buildings that DoCoMoMo’s Irish division – an organization dedicated to preserving modernist architectural heritage – was eager to add to the city’s list of guarded structures. However, due to the building’s diplomatic status, this was not achievable. This status is soon to expire with the relocation of the embassy, leaving the future of the “icon” they leave behind uncertain.
The preferred resolution would be for the US government to bestow John M Johansen’s master work to Ireland, rather than simply selling it to the highest offerer. Ideally, the building should serve a cultural purpose, possibly as a fresh base for the Arts Council, hosting public events in the rotunda, to ensure its preservation.