51�Թ�

UN Headquarters: A Workshop for Peace

UN Headquarters: A Workshop for Peace

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Wallace Harrison, Director of Planning, 1947

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Rendering of the 51�Թ� Headquarters, drawn by Hugh Ferriss for the Board of Design, 1947.

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Planning and Building UNHQ

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Planning and Building UNHQ

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Niemeyer��s proposal (number 32)

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Le Corbusier��s proposal number 23A with the General Assembly in the middle of the site.

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The compromise design the group agreed on. Numbered 23B, it is a combination of 23A and 32.

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The Secretariat rises from the ruins of the slaughterhouses and breweries previously on the site. The chimneys of the then Consolidated Edison��s power-plant are in the background.

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The Secretariat Building under construction

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The Secretariat towering over the dome of the General Assembly, 1951

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The Lobby of the Secretariat Building from the south, 1951

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Secretariat: Entrance reserved for dignitaries, post-renovation

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The Secretariat Building post-renovation

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Conference Building

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Conference Building

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The Security Council Chamber under construction

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Security Council Chamber, mid-1950s

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Security Council Chamber post-renovation

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Trusteeship Council Chamber, 1952

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Trusteeship Council Chamber, 1977

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Trusteeship Council Chamber post-renovation

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Economic and Social Council Chamber (ECOSOC), 1952

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Economic and Social Council Chamber (ECOSOC) post-renovation

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Economic and Social Council Chamber (ECOSOC) post-renovation

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General Assembly Building

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General Assembly Building

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The General Assembly Building after completion in 1952 seen from across First Avenue

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The south side of the General Assembly Building after the renovation

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The sloping backdrop of the General Assembly Hall with its original ornamental grid of disc-shaped lights. They were removed because television crews and photographers were unable to capture high-quality images of the speakers.

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Scaffolding in the General Assembly Hall during renovation work

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The renovated General Assembly Hall re-opened in September 2014 in time to host the annual General Debate

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The north fa?ade of the General Assembly Building and the Visitors�� Terrace, 1952

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The Visitors�� Lobby, on the north side of the General Assembly Building, 1952

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Dag Hammarskj?ld's quote

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Where:

51�Թ� Headquarters, Visitors' Lobby

Date:

Ongoing

This photo exhibition commemorates the founding of 51�Թ� Headquarters (UNHQ) in New York by showcasing archival images of selected design proposals developed in 1947 by a team of international architects led by Wallace Harrison as well as images taken during the construction of the compound between 1949 and 1952.

The exhibition also includes photos of the recently renovated UNHQ (renovation: 2008-2014).

Credits

Archival photos: J. Alex Langley, Hugh A. McKevitt, Gary Rosenberg, Ezra Stoller/Esto, UN photos

Post renovation photos: Chris Cooper, Esther Nisanova, UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras, UN Photo/Mildred Ochoa, UN Photo/Werner Schmidt