Building and Rebuilding the State Power in Vietnam Research and Design by Fabrizio Furiassi
Building and Rebuilding the State Power
Academic
Forced Commemorations: The Preservation of the Body of Ho Chi Minh In 1968, a year before the death of Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese communist party sent a group of medical doctors to Soviet Union with a secret mission: learning the art of embalming. At that time, the body of Ho Chi Minh was already considered a national property by the government, and nurtered without his knowledge with the intention of preparing its future preservation. Following the death of the president in 1969, the intentions of the government became more evident with the constructions of a higly transparent funeral casket and a majestic mausoleum for staging the body forever. Then and now, the body is constantly tested, res-sculpted and re-embalmed to guarantee its intact appearence for thousands of visiting pilgrims. The body, the casket, the architecture of the mausoleum, and the extreme mobilization of people, are all elements of an aesthetic orchestration aimed to perpetuate the political power through forced commemorations. As the body of Ho Chi Minh is fragile and needs to be regenerated, the political power is also fragile and needs this state apparatus to build and rebuild itself ciclically. The project challenges the perception of the body by extending the mausoleum with six new rooms. Each room is a station where visitors can observe the routine operations on the body of Ho Chi Minh. The rooms are both technical spaces and stages in which the body is celebrated as a national and sacral object, and where the processes of embalming and re-embalming become a spectacle. Since the opening of the mausoleum in 1975, the government has hidden everything able to subvert the illusion that the body is frozen in the same state since the death of Ho Chi Minh in 1969. While extending the forced commemoration with six operating rooms, architecture becomes an agent unveiling what is needed to recognize the body as a political instrument inscribed in the national context of power.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works 3
Building and Rebuilding the State Power
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Vladimir Lenin embalmed in his mausoleum Red Square, Moscow, Russia Larry Koester / Flickr Funeral of Ho Chi Minh Hanoi, Vietnam, 1969
The team working on the preservation of the Ho Chi Minh’s body is the same curating the body of Lenin. Assumingly, the conditions of the two bodies are similar.
Taking pictures inside the mausoleum is strictly forbidden, and no ohter pictures of the corpse are currently available. 4
Fabrizio Furiassi
Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works 5
Building and Rebuilding the State Power
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calcium fat
Margarine
Spinach
Sardine
Coconut Milk Chicken
Cow’s Milk
Peanuts Tofu
Shrimps
Fish
Lettuce Ginger
protein
Carrots
Eggs
Manioc
dr. le ngoc man
Apple
ho chi minh
vegetables Grapefruit Pepper
Head of Surgical Department Vietnam-Soviet Friendship Hospital (trained in Soviet Union in 1967)
Orange
String beans
78 Years Old Diabetes
dr. le dieu
fruit
Head of Increatology Department (trained in Soviet Union in 1967)
Peach
Mung beans
juice
Cucumber
Durian
grains, beans, starchy vegetables
Whole wheat bread
dr. nguyen gia quyen Head of Anatomy Department Personal Doctor of Ho Chi Minh (trained in Soviet Union in 1967)
Rice Noodles
Sweet Potato
Unleavened bread
Rice
Regular consumption Moderate consumption
The preservation of the body of Ho Chi Minh started before his death with the subministration of a typical diet for a patient with diabetes. The aim was not only to improve his health, but to prepare the body for preservation. 6
Fabrizio Furiassi
In 1968, the Vietnamese government established a laboratory for the health of Ho Chi Minh at the Military Hospital 108 in Hanoi. team of medical doctors trained in Soviet Union working to improve the health of the president.
Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works
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ba dinh ceremonial hall Soviet-style building (demolished in 2007)
2 weeks in a Tropical Region skeletonization
No more traces of tissue or cartilage
decomposition
The body attracts bacteria and insects
putrefaction
Self-digestion due to acid substances Greenish color of the skin
3 Hours livor mortis
2-6 Hours
Bluish color of the skin
rigor mortis
1 °C / Hour
15-120 Min
transparent funeral casket
High-quality transparent glass (not available in Vietnam during the war in 1969)
In 1968, during the war, higly transparent glass was not available in Vietnam. The need of maximizing the visibility of the body of Ho Chi Minh brought the government to extract the glass from the windows of an existing building: the Ba Dinh Ceremonial Hall. 8
Fabrizio Furiassi
Rigidity of the body
algor mortis
Coldness The temperature equalizes to the surrounding environment
pallor mortis
Paleness caused by a deactivated circulatory system
The casket was also important to maintain the corpse. In a tropical region like Vietnam the decomposition of a body can occur in 2 weeks, and it was needed to prevent the risk of dehydration, loss of skin color, and the process of “self-digestion” due to the acids that the body contains, before actually embalming the body. Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works 9
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mummy
embalming
organs removal
To avoid the process of “self-digestion�
replacement of liquids with embalming fluids
The blood contains bacteria that can damage the body from inside
chemicals 1. Paraffin 2. Glycerin 3. Caroten 4. Potassium 5. Mild Bleach 6. Formaldehyde
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Fabrizio Furiassi
The process of embalming consists in the removal of the internal organs and the replacement of the blood with embalming liquids, as the blood contains bacteria that can damage the body from inside. There are some substances employed in this process such as paraffin, glycerin, carotene, potassium, mild bleach and formaldehyde.
Embalming, differently from mummification, is a typology of preservation aimed to maintain the appearance of the body rather than its actual flesh. In other words, the objective is to preserve the body’s look, shape, weight, color, flexibility, but not necessarily its original biological matter. In the case of Lenin it seems that only the 20 % of the body is original, while the rest is made by other substances. Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works 11
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Surface to air missile
Operation flight paths
Secret cave
Target
china
Ha Giang Lao Cai
north vietnam
Cho Moi Phu Bien Yen Bay
Thai Nguyen
Ha Hoi
Kep
Viet Tri
Tan Phong
HANOI Bac Giang
Phu Giang
Haidoung Hoa Binh Hung Yen Nam Dinh Thai Binh Ninh Dinh
mausoleum of ho chi minh
Head architects: Medenxep (Soviet Union) Isakovich (Soviet Union) Vuoc Quoc My (Vietnam) Nguyen Nngoc Chan (Vietnam)
Than Hoa
propaganda banner
“Long live to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam”
Vinh
NƯỚC CỘNG HÒA XÃ HỘI CHỦ NGHĨA VIỆT NAM MUÔN NĂM Gulf of Tonkin
laos
Hanoi, 1972 Christmas Bombing (Dec. 18-23) Ho Chi Minh died in 1969 during the war; in order to protect his body from bombing, it had to be moved six times before landing in the actual mausoleum in 1975. 12
Fabrizio Furiassi
The Mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh is a replica of the Mausoleum of Lenin in the Red Square in Moscow integrating some architectural features derived from local architecture. It was built in 1975, at the end of the war, with the help of Soviet Union that provided part of the materials, machines, and architects. The building has a banner on the side saying “long live to the social republic of Vietnam” implicitly connecting the body of Ho Chi Minh to the State. A large flag in the center of the square in front of the mausoleum indicates the location as a national landmark. Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works 13
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Automatic Fire Alarm
Water tank
Dim light
body in the casket
2 fully charged batteries
examination
Spot light
Everyday
make-up When needed
Emergency Electric generator
Water pump
casket
bath
Formaldehyde Glycerol Potassium Acetate for 30 days (every 2 years)
TEMPERATURE 16 °C HUMIDITY 75% Camera for remote control
clothes change Every 2 weeks
17 Air-Conditioning systems
Visible Invisible
The mausoleum is a machine.: it includes an emergency electric generator, 2 fully charged batteries, an automatic fire alarm, cameras for remote control, dim lights, 17 AC systems to keep a constant temperature of 16 °C, and a large water tank and a pomp directly connected to the body of Ho Chi Minh to assure a humidity of 75% (atmospheric conditions that are ideal for its preservation). All those elements are actually invisible, while having a fundamental role in the functioning of the mausoleum. 14
Fabrizio Furiassi
There is a routine inside the mausoleum: the body is cyclically tested, re-embalmed and re-sculpted. The clothes are changed every two weeks, and when it is needed the make-up is refreshed. Every two years the body is sent to Russia for a formaldehyde bath of 30 days (a process done both for eliminating any potential bacterial activity on the body and for restoring the pinkish color of the skin). Columbia GSAPP / Selected Works 15
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Honorable guards
Do not cross the line Guards
There is a routine also outside of the mausoleum. The area is completely militarized, with guards come and go assuring a 24/7 military protection to the body.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
The guards control the choreography of the commemoration by organizing thousands of pilgrims in a single-line of approximately 1 Km, dictating a walking rhythm similar to a military march. Selected Works 17
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National Flag
Communist Party Symbol
Guard
Honorable guard Ho Chi Minh’s body
Ho Chi Minh
Visitor
Currently, the visit inside the mausoleum takes less than 30 seconds. When you enter the room with the body you can’t actually stop walking, you can’t talk or take pictures.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
The space is an aesthetic assemblage of architecture, bodies and symbols. The light is very dark so that the face of Ho Chi Minh stands out thanks to a special light pointed on it. Two hanging flags, the one of the nation, and the one of the communist party, suggest an association between the body, the state and the ruling political party. Selected Works 19
Building and Rebuilding the State Power
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National TV Channel
Mausoleum
Casket Ho Chi Minh’s body
Military Parade
People
The collaboration between the body, the casket, the architecture of the mausoleum, and the extreme mobilization of people, constitutes an aesthetic orchestration aimed to perpetuate the political power through forced commemorations. As the body is fragile and needs to be regenerated, the political power is also fragile and needs this State apparatus to build and rebuild itself cyclically.
Commemoration and TV streaming.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
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Building and Rebuilding the State Power
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EXTENSION
EXisting mausoleum 1
Glass Structures
Glass Structures
UV Filters
UV Filters
Operating Theatre
Operating Theatre
Ground Level
2
Ground Level
4
3 19 21
27
26 Level -1 27
30 31
9
22
17 1611 12 10 6
13
14 5
15 20
31
8
Level -1
24 7
18
25 Zone 1 / Aseptic
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Zone 2 / Clean Zone 3 / Protected Zone 4 / Unprotected
1. Operating Rooms 2. Security Space 3. Connection to the Mausoleum 4. Ramp / Seating 5. Changing Room 6. Sterile Staff Room 7. Preparation Room 8. Refrigerator 9. Medical Storage
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Fabrizio Furiassi
10. Kitchenette 11. Control Room 12. Sterile Storage 13. Equipment Storage 14. Cleaning Area 15. Workshop 16. Sleeping Room 17. Meeting Room 18. Technical Room 19. Loading Area
20 Office (1 Person) 21. Office 5 People 21. Office 10 People 22. Office 25 People 23. Office 50 People 24. Seminar Room 25. Resting Room 26. Reception 27. Checkroom 28. General Storage
29. Public Restroom 30. Police Office 31. WC
Ho Chi Minh’s Body Medical Staff Staff / Students Equipment / Machines Police / Honorable Guards Visitors
The extension of the mausoleum is organized in 4 functional zones representing 4 distinct degrees of purified air in which the bacterial count progressively diminishes, from the outer to the inner zone (operating rooms). From the unprotected zone to the aseptic zone. Indoor air quality is the major challenge for preventing the bacterial contamination of Ho Chi Minh’s body in a building designed to host a large staff and a large crowd of visitors at the same time. Since air carries many bacteria dangerous to the preservation of Ho Chi Minh’s body, the provision of clean air is central to avoid potential damages of it. For this reason, the traffic is separate avoiding the crisscross movement of Ho Chi Minh’s body (coming from the mausoleum) staff, medical staff, machines/equipment, and visitors.
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Storage
Service Room
Lobby
Staff Reception
Staff Entrance
General Storage
Changing Room
Restroom
Restroom
Entrance
Loading Area
General Storage
Entrance Zone 3
WC Storage
Kitchenette Public Restoroom
Staff Room
Seminar Room
Lab 50 People
Lab 10 People
Lab 10 People
Lab 10 People
WC Reception WC
Police Office Entrance Zone 3
Preparation Room
Firefighiting Device Room
Sterile Storage
Entrance Zone 2 Refrigeretors Locker Room
Meeting Room
General Storage
Sterile Control Storage Room
Sterile Staff Room
Lab 1 Person
Lab 1 Person Office 10 People
Lab 1 Person
Lab 1 Person
Firefighiting Device Room
Sterile Staff Room
Entrance Zone 2
Equipment Cleaning
Equipment Store
EXisting mausoleum
Guards Entrance Guards Entrance
Lift
Technical Room
Lab 5 People
Locker Room
Lab 5 People
Entrance Zone 2 Meeting Room
Visitors Access Ramp
Office 60 People
Lab 25 People
Lab 25 People
Checkpoint
Visitors Entrance
Locker Room
Locker Room
Lab 5 People
Restroom
Meeting Room
Changing Room
Large Meeting Room
Changing Room
Technical Room
Locker Room
Technical Meeting Room Area
Pantry Kitchenette
Lab 5 People
Lab 5 People
Emergency Lift
Restroom WC
Lab 25 People
WC
Changing Room
General Storage
Sterile Staff Room
Technical Room
Equipment Maintenance
Lab 5 People
Restroom
Lab 1 Person
Lab 25 People
Lab 1 Person
Restroom
Locker Room
Changing Room
Restroom
Technical Room
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Zone 1 / Aseptic Zone 2 / Clean Zone 3 / Protected Zone 4 / Unprotected
0
20 m
Plan, Level -1 24
Fabrizio Furiassi
Selected Works 25
Building and Rebuilding the State Power
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Lift
Casket Room
Clothing Room
Observation Room
Re-sculpting Re-Embalming Room
Bath Room
Make-Up Room
EXisting mausoleum
Emergency Lift
Ramp / Seating
Circulation Space Visitors Entrance
N
Zone 1 / Aseptic Zone 2 / Clean Zone 3 / Protected Zone 4 / Unprotected
0
20 m
The plan of the ground floor is organized as a concentric series of enveloping glass layers (4 glass boxes). The core is the box hosting the operating rooms surrounded by a ziggurat-like ramp working both as a walking path to the mausoleum and as a seating to watch the operations.
Plan, Ground Level 26
Fabrizio Furiassi
Selected Works 27
Building and Rebuilding the State Power
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operating suit
Water-proof suit in Gore-Tex with heat-sealed stitching and zipper on the back side for a total isolation.
Glabella - Actinobacteria
Helmet
Breathing filtering helmet in plastic with higly transparent glass for maximal visibility and elastic collar. Air enters in the front and goes out in the back to avoid contamination.
Alar crease - Actinobacteria
Eternal Auditory Canal - Actinobacteria Retroauricular crease - Actinobacteria
Nare - Actinobacteria
Occiput - Firmicutes
Manubrium - Actinobacteria
Axyllary Vault - Proteobacteria
Back - Actinobacteria
Antecubital Fossa - Firmicutes Buttock - Proteobacteria
gloves
Volar Forearm - Proteobacteria Gluteal crease - Actinobacteria
Latex gloves with elastic weistband.
Popliteal Fossa - Firmicutes Interdigital Web Space - Proteobacteria Plantar Heel - Firmicutes
Hypothenar Palm - Proteobacteria
Inguinal Crease - Actinobacteria
boots
Toe Web Space - Cyanobacteria
Water-proof boots with adjustable velcro closure.
front
back
As a biological system the human body is host to a huge quantity of bacteria. Therefore, the medical staff can actually be responsible for the contamination of the Ho Chi Minh’s body. In the operating room this might cause many problems since the medical staff constitutes a constant source of contamination.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
A possibility to prevent contamination from the medical staff is to encapsulate the bacteria source using helmets and suits to reduce the quantity of bacteria reversed into the operating room. Impermeable clothing combined with a helmet with an exhaust system is the most effective (this might also help the doctors not to be exposed to potentially dangerous chemicals used in the embalming process). Selected Works 29
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UV filtration
The entire building is the organized as a reduction of the natural light from the exterior to the interior. The reduction consists in a succession of selective filters (films applied on the glass, or the glass itself) progressively eliminating the quantity of UV rays according to the required parameters of preservation.
existing mausoleum
extension
5000 Lux
Visitors and staff space 4th Layer
Ramp 3nd Layer
15 m
Military space 2nd Layer
145 m
Operating Rooms 1st Layer
60 m
10-20 Lux
Axonometric view 30
Fabrizio Furiassi
Another potential cause of damage for Ho Chi Minh’s body is light. Light causes the alteration of materials at the molecular level, both by photochemical deterioration, for the shortest wavelengths such as ultraviolet, as well as by heating the material, for longer wavelengths approaching infrared radiation. While guaranteeing the maximum visibility and protection (glass and bulletproof glass), the entire building is the organized as a reduction of the natural light from the exterior to the interior. Selected Works 31
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9 1
4
6
3
11
5
8
7 10
2
DEVICES
The rooms are connected with air-proof revolving doors representing both an efficient and spectacular system of moving the body from room to room.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
1. AC UNIT 2. AC VENTS 3. HEPA (High efficiency particulate air) 4. electric generator 5. 2 fully charged batteries 6. water tanks 7. dim lights 8. spot lights 9. automatic fire alarm 10. electric socket 11 camera for remote control
All rooms have in common design principles such as being totally airtight and with an optimized internal ventilation, energy independent, have an adequate space to host the equipment, and being fully transparent. The rooms have a framework on which lights and technical equipment is suspended like in the theatre. Selected Works 33
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UP DOWN
Scheme of the “ziggurat� ramp.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
The operating rooms are not only technical spaces to operate the body, but they are stages in which the body of Ho Chi Minh is celebrated as a national and sacral object. The operating rooms are theatres in which embalming becomes a spectacle.
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BODY ELEVATION The body is spectacularly elevated with a lift to the ground floor.
CASKET OPENING
CLOTHING CHANGE
OBSERVATION
RE-SCULPTING & RE-EMBALMING
FORMALDEHYDE BATH
MAKE-UP
The casket is open with the help of mechanical arms, the body is extracted and located on a movable operating table. Since this moment the body is in the Zone 1: the aseptic area.
The clothes are removed. Since this moment the body is naked. A ring of clothes hanged on a suspended circular rack works as a theatrical curtain opening and closing the view to the visitors.
The body is observed through cameras and special lights. A multi-screen installation allows the visitors and the medical staff to look at the details of the body of Ho Chi Minh in real-time.
This is the space where the body is actually operated. The surgical instruments are exposed on pedestals of different size and height.
This phase occurs every two years and lasts 30 days. The entire room in injected with formaldehyde while the body is located on a suspended bed.
In this room the look of the body is perfected by comparing it with a replica and adapting the original one with make-up.
ENTRANCE The body in the casket enters the building and is transported through an underground corridor to the lift where medical staff will take care of it.
Section 36
Fabrizio Furiassi
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Outside
Outside
Zone 4
Zone 4
Zone 3
Zone 3
Zone 2
Zone 2
casket
Zone 1
casket base
lift
Zone 2
Zone 3
The casket is elevated to the ground floor.
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Fabrizio Furiassi
Mechanical Arms
CASKET LID
Zone 2
Zone 3
The casket is open. Since this moment, the body is in the aseptic zone and ready to be tested.
Selected Works 39
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Fabrizio Furiassi
The building from oustide
Selected Works 41