Building Conflict: Islamic Center in Zürich, Switzerland

In celebration of the launch of “Foreign Architects Switzerland,” a new publication, we are hosting an ideas competition for an Islamic Center in Zürich. Triggered by the recent ban on the construction of minarets in Switzerland, we search for entrees where Muslims can gather and practice their religion in an open, western context.
On a prominent site above the Limmat River, the presence of such a Mosque is impossible to camouflage. How can architecture, as a manifestation of social relationships, expedite conflicts in a city? Is Zuerich an undisturbed town, or a war-zone, a platform for ideas to be fought for? How can elements of a foreign culture be augmented, rather than diminished, through contextualism?

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