Projects — Civic & Commercial — Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat

Prominently sited on Ottawa’s ceremonial Sussex Drive, the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat was conceived by the Aga Khan as a secular sanctuary for peace, diplomacy and global pluralism. Moriyama & Teshima collaborated with the Pritzker Prize-winning architect Fumihiko Maki to design and deliver this technically rigorous building. Exterior walls of white crystallized glass impart a soft, luminous quality akin to fine porcelain and appear to float above a recessed base of black granite. Enclosed within the walls are two symbolic meeting spaces—the glass-roofed Atrium, inspired by natural stone crystals and Islamic geometries, and the open-air Courtyard, based upon traditional Char Bagh walled gardens. A stunning hexagon-patterned Jali screen in the Atrium creates an ever-changing interplay of light and shadow, while the floor of Canadian maple adds visual warmth and a domestic note of welcome. The Ismaili Imamat received a 2012 Governor General’s Medal for Architecture.