Photo Gérald SCIBOZ.
One of the largest construction sites in International Geneva
The Maison de la paix will be the heart of the Campus de la paix. Future headquarters of the Institute, it will bring together all of its activities including teaching, research and events focusing on major world issues, which today take place in several separate locations.
Situated between the chemin Rigot and the railway lines, the Maison de la paix will be at the gates of Geneva. Its unique design, in the form of six petals, and its double facade will attract the attention of all passengers entering and leaving the city.
A high-quality work of architecture, the Maison de la paix was designed to be a long-term home for the Institute. At the centre of the building will be an auditorium that will seat 600 people, 15 classrooms, 10 seminar and work rooms, a library with a surface of 4500 m2 on two levels, and a cafeteria that will seat 170 and includes a terrace with 80 seats.
A selection of pieces of contemporary art will decorate the exceptional architectural structure and will demonstrate the Institute’s ambition to have a home that is a centre for intellectual exchange and international culture. A jury made up of high-level experts was created to choose the art and after examining the architectural plans, it will establish a list of artists from whom the works will be commissioned.
Petals one and two will house the Institute’s community while petals two, three and four will house three centres supported by the Swiss Confederation (the Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces, the Geneva Centre for Security Policy and the Centre for Humanitarian Demining). Petals three and four will be completed at the end of the year, the two last petals in the middle of 2014.
Students, visitors and local residents will be able to appreciate the surrounding grounds which will be maintained with care.
The mixed financing of the Maison de la paix (public contributions, donations, mortgage) is a successful example of a public-private partnership. The Institute will benefit from the right to use the property for 100 years, granted by the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation which bought the land where the building will be situated, and a donation of 10 million dollars by Mrs Kathryn W. Davis, Institute Alumna, for the library which will bear her name.
