Report: Plans for "eyesore" new Iran embassy in London riles locals

Aug 2, 2010, 12:59 GMT

London - Ambitious plans by Iran to build a futuristic new embassy in London which would also house a contemporary art gallery and cultural centre has been greeted with dismay by local residents who describe the proposed building as an 'eyesore,' the Guardian newspaper reported Monday.

It said the Iranian foreign ministry has submitted a planning application for the six-storey building on a street corner in South Kensington, in the vicinity of landmarks such as the Natural History Museum and the Royal Albert Hall.

The project, costing an estimated 100 million pounds (158 million dollars), is design of Armin Daneshgar, a leading Iranian architect based in Vienna.

It would feature a dramatic cantilevered arch, acutely-angled walls and irregularly punched-out windows, the Guardian reported, in what it describes as an attempt to 'enhance Iran's public image in London.'

The current Iranian embassy at Prince's Gate, in a town house just a stone's throw away, is best remembered for the prolonged 1980 terrorist siege that ended dramatically by when the SAS, British special forces, abseiled into the building.

'The cube-shaped building at the corner could be accessed freely by the public and feature exhibits such as contemporary artworks made by young Iranian artists,' Daneshgar told the Guardian.

'We believe Iran's rich cultures, especially contemporary movements, are still largely unknown to the west,' he said.

However, local residents have expressed unease about the plan, describing the scheme as a 'spaceship' and an 'eyesore out of keeping with the rest of the area.'

A group of concerned residents had already asked Prince Charles, a known defender of traditionalist architecture in London, to raise his objection to the plan.

But Prince Charles, heir to the throne, recently had his fingers burnt when a London court ruled that his interference in a Qatar-backed redevelopment project in central London had been 'unwelcome.'

The 3-billion pound project to build high-rise luxury flats in the former grounds of Chelsea Barracks was, however, stopped after Prince Charles' intervention with the Qatari royal family.