Used as a meeting place for thousands of policymakers and diplomats, the North Delegates’ Lounge has always played a key role in the way the United Nations work. As an informal counterpoint to the spaces where conversations are official and recorded, the lounge is a space where encounters can occur on a more human level — allowing for diplomatic ‘friendships to be born, or renewed, and animosities to be assuaged’ (Jongerius).

The Dutch team, with Jongerius at its helm, considered this context deeply, and focused on delivering a space that could provide functionality, comfort, timelessness, and the safeguarding of privacy in diplomatic encounters.

The pieces Jongerius made for the space — the ‘Sphere table’, the ‘UN Lounge Chair’ and the ‘Knots & Beads Curtain’ — precisely reflect these qualities.

Finally, the sculptural ‘Knots & Beads Curtain’ is hung tight in front of the slanted windows of the East façade. Composed of 30,000 partly glazed porcelain beads, the curtain carries a plethora of references, not least the maritime history of the Netherlands. Handcrafted by Dutch craftsmen, the beads literally bring a piece of the country into the United Nations, and metaphorically evoke the union of myriad unique and different entities.