advanced studios
un 2 manhattan, nyc critic: thomas leeser

Cold War U.N. Allegiances Nuclear Weapon Programs OPEC and Major Oil Exporters The Failure of the U.N. Throughout the Cold War, the Security Council was paralyzed by With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the fading influence
the veto power routinely exercised by the diabolically opposed of the UK and France, the power paradigm shifted as the US
Following the conclusion of WWII, the United Nations was estab- superpowers, the US and USSR. It failed to control the massive remained the only superpower. New countries have emerged to fill
lished by the victorious Allied Powers as an organization of nation- nuclear arms race between the two superpowers that defined the the void left by the old guard, in particular new economic powers
states that was intended to prevent, manage and resolve conflicts Cold War. However a third world war on the scale of the first two like Japan. Even countries that might not be considered powerful
among nations. Through collective security, the combined power was avoided over this tense and tenuous period. in the traditional sense must now be considered as they are now
of the international community could be brought to bear against influential in new realms. Yet most of these countries hold little au-
the offending nation. No single nation had sufficient means to take thority in the UN. For example, India contains a sixth of the world’s
on the world. population and supports one of the world’s largest economies,
however it only is alloted one vote within the General Assembly.
The Security Council was designed to be the main instrument of
the United Nations for the maintenance of peace and security. Fif- Over its history, the UN has remained stagnant while the world has
Capitalist S.C. Allies Non-Proliferation Treaty Nuclear Weapon States OPEC Nations teen member states sit on the Security Council, including the five evolved around it. The question must be posed: Does the struc-
permanent members that wield veto rights: US, UK, France, Russia ture of the UN reflect the current state of the world we live in?
Capitalist Allies Non-NPT Nuclear Weapon States Non-OPEC Affiliated Major Oil Exporters (originally USSR), and China. These five countries emerged as
Communist S.C. Allies Suspected Clandestine Nuclear Weapon Programs powers at the conclusion of WWII and have remained in control of
their permanent status over the duration of the UN, even as new
Communist Allies Abstaining States: Potential for Nuclear Weapons
powers have materialized.
Neutral Countries No Nuclear Weapon Program
=
Security Council Vetoes Historically Does U.N. Power Reflect Concentration of Wealth and Population?
San Marino India
Population: 28,000 Population: 1,000,000,000
Vote: 1 Vote: 1
Security Council Permanent Five
Population 500,000 People
GDP $2 Billion

Volkswagon Production Sites Internet Users Terrorist Organizations
“The formal political system today faces a new geography of power. Globalization and the new technologies have contributed to the shrinking of state authority and the explosion of a whole series of new actors
engaged in governance activities.”
Saskia Sassen
Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago
A New Geography of Power?
Ingo Gunther
Emerging Corporate Powers Deregulation Privatization Fading Borders Contrasting Paradigms for Development in Depressed Countries
RANK COUNTRY GDP (BIL $)
The nation-state as we know it today is an 18th century ‘inven-
CORPORATION MV (BIL $) $ £ € ¥ $
1 United States of America 11,713
tion.’ World War II and the ensuing Cold War were perhaps the
2 Japan 4,669 pinnacle for the concept of the modern nation-state. The central
3 Germany 2,741
4 United Kingdom 2,214 government held all power and was capable of galvanizing its
5 France 2,047
Government Spending Government Spending people into a unified force. However there has been a subtle shift
6 Italy 1,678
7 China 1,649 in the power paradigm over the last half century as the empha- Central
8 Spain 1,040
9 Canada 992
sis on growing the economy has prevailed. Governments have
Govt
10 India 681 taken steps towards deregulization and privatization of the public
11 Republic of Korea 680
12 Mexico 676 sector. Deregulation has led to large economic trade zones, while
13
14
Australia
Brazil
690
593
privatization has granted the private sector access to the tradition-
15 Russia 582 ally public domain. This has allowed large corporate entities with
16 Netherlands 579
17 ExxonMobil (US) 363 global reach to emerge. In fact a few of the biggest corporations Central Local Local Local
18
19
Switzerland
Belgium
357
352
command more assets than most countries and even rival some Govt Govt Govt Govt
20 General Electric (US) 348 of the wealthiest nations.
21 Sweden 346
Technology, most notably the internet, transcends boundaries
22
23
Turkey
Austria
302
292
$ $ and further shrinks the world, facilitating growth. However not
24 Microsoft (US) 279
25 Norway 250 all growth is good. The internet and the free flow of capital have
26 Saudia Arabia 244
27 Poland 242
allowed amebic terrorist organizations to flourish in the shadows.
28 Denmark 241 Worse, while many have benefited from a global economy, there Local Local Local
29 Citigroup (US) 231 NGOs Multi- Minority
30 BP (US) 226 are many more that have been left in its wake. The United Nations
NAFTA has taken greater responsibility in providing assistance, however National Group
31 Indonesia 225
32 South Africa 213
33 Greece 205 Govt its efforts are often squandered by inefficiency and corruption.
34 Royal Dutch (NL) 204
35 Procter & Gamble (US) 197 Agency Instead of attempting to provide general assistance for a disparate
36
37
HSBC Group (UK)
Pfizer (US)
193
192
set of needs around the world, should the UN act as a market $ £ € ¥ $
38 Walmart (US) 189 maker faciliating capital flow and services from more efficient Top-Down Bottom-Up
39 Finland 186
40 Ireland 182 private organizations directly to the need area?

Voronoi Crowd-Scape Competing with Towers
A Voronoi diagram is Manhattan is a unique urban landscape organized by the
a decomposition of a structure of the grid and constrained by two rivers. The result
metric space. For a is a modern city that has grown upwards rather than outwards.
given set of points, a When built in the 1950s, the Secretariat was one of the first of its
voronoi cell contains kind, a clean and simple modern tower with open floor plates and
all coordinates minimal structure designed under the influence of Le Corbusier.
closer to the cell’s Situated along the East River and originally towering over its
center point than any neighbors, the Secretariat has served as an icon for the United
other point. Nations. However over the last 60 years, Manhattan has grown
up around the UN and the Secretariat is now only one tower
A Voronoi diagram among many.
has many applica- Boundary Functions by Scott Snibbe
tions in science. It This rapid growth has created a hyper-dense urban environment
is often used to map defined by the tower. Central Park remains as the last oasis of
crowd dynamics, real green space within Manhattan. Either through neglect or
where the crowd’s perhaps intentionally, public space became an afterthought in the
behavior is governed city’s development. Public space for crowds to gather and rally
by relationship is sparse within Manhattan, as made evident by the 2004 Re-
between indivudal publican National Convention. In the modern age of the internet
speed and proxim- where digital networks have the capacity to connect new com-
ity to other people. munities of people, demand for the physicallity of a public space
Scott Snibbe is higher than ever. The image of the crowd, used effectively by
explored this with an the media, can be a powerful tool to influence the direction of
interactive instal- political issues.
lation in which he
demonstrated that What better forum for a crowd to gather than the United Nations
personal space itself? Could architecture be designed for the crowd? Could
exists only in relation we bring the public directly to the diplomats serving the United
to each other. Nations?

Voronoi as Structure The Physics of Foam
The potential for engineers to tap into nature’s structural systems
is great. The porcupine quill is an excellent example of the possi-
The unstable mass of bubbles
bilities of voroni structure. A foam-like core supports a thin outer
may appear to be disorderly,
shell. The density of the foam-like core varies according to the
however closer inspection
stresses across the quill. The structural implications are obvious,
reveals a high level of inner
however there are architectural implications as well. Density could
order that Joseph Plateau
vary according to program, or perhaps according to function,
first discovered in the 1873.
whether as skin, surface, or structure.
In fact the basic structure of
foam arise from fundamental
physical principles. From his
research, Plateau deduced the
following topological rules: 1)
no more than three faces can
meet in a line and 2) no more
than four of these lines can
meet at a vertex. These re-
quirements allow for stability.
In 1993, Denis Weaire and
Robert Phelan discovered a
structure that given equally
sized cells, minimized the
amount of surface area nec-
essary to partition space. The
Weaire-Phelan structure has
architectural implications as it
can be 100 times lighter than
the equivalent solid material.

Continuous Surface
The Voroni structure becomes a continuous surface that blankets
over the site. It warps and folds across the site, creating key
access points and volumes to contain program. In theory it is one
continuous surface allowing pedestrian access across the entire
site. Unlike the current United Nations layout where the buildings
are nestled safely away from the scrutiny of the public eye, the
proposed surface draws the public into and across the site. The
city literally walks above it. A new relationship is formed between
the public and the United Nations.
Not all UN proceedings are appropriate for the public to view. Dif-
ferent levels of density within the structure and translucency of the
materials manage the relationship between public and private. The
roof itself is porous at certain points, allowing the public to mean-
der into and through the various meeting places without actually
interfering with the proceedings.
Diplomats
Public

Site Layout Secretariat
The amorphic building fingers into Manhattan out of the confines General Assembly
of the site, bidding the public to permeate through the United Na-
Councilships
tions. The undulating surface is noticably depressed in relation to
the surrounding extruded towers, in fact one of the cones housing Library
the Secretariat dives down into the East River. This gesture might Consultant Wing
be considered whimsical, however the flattening of the site estab-
lishes a new relationship with the city and ultimately the world to
which it serves. The position of the UN and the public has been
inverted.
The UN becomes a space for the public. The surface is without
vertical borders. No longer can the UN hide safely away from the
public eye, as the city is now invited to walk over the building. It
is a space where groups can congregate and exercise their right to
protest on a world stage.