Panel discussion between Bram de Maeyer and Sally Farrah organised by the ACT Heritage Library for the ACT Heritage Festival 2026.
This discussion is structured around a series of drawings and photographs of the Belgian Embassy in Canberra designed by Fowell Mansfield & Maclurcan (1958-60). The talk commences with an outline of the geopolitics and urban factors that led to the siting and design of the Belgian Embassy, a mid-century moment that coincided with Australia’s coming of age as a sovereign country, and the cementing of bilateral ties between nations on Diplomatic Hill. The typology of the purpose-built embassy is divided into two parts: the residence; and the chancery. Our discussion homes in on the rich spaces of representation in the ambassadorial residence, a unique typology that dually serves as private and public space, with the interiors revealing interesting gender politics. A discussion of form, style, planning, materiality, and décor, reveals the layers of symbolism and representation at work in embassy architecture.