The U.S. Embassy in London is centrally located in the Nine Elms district, a revitalized industrial neighborhood close to the center of London that was historically part of the royal Vauxhall Gardens, overlooking the River Thames. Constructed by Kieran Timberlake, the embassy is deeply connected to its immediate neighborhood, the Borough of Wandsworth, Central London, the newly constructed linear park and public transportation.
In celebration of our GIFT FOR THE NATION 250 initiative, FAPE installed a major new work by Ilya and Emilia Kabakov at the U.S. Embassy in London, in July. Flying was realized in a tile mosaic and is monumental in scale, measuring nearly 30 feet wide by seven feet high.
The mural features a utopia of soaring figures, flying above Earth. The artists leave the viewer to decide the origins of the scene. Is it because the time came when it was impossible to live on Earth and everybody moved to virtual reality? Or even to another planet? Or is it just the opposite: Earth became so pure and beautiful that we ourselves became weightless and can fly?
Ilya and Emilia Kabakov, Flying, 2025
Hand-glazed ceramic tile, 7 ½ x 28 feet
Flying is on the 6th floor of the embassy, one of the most highly trafficked. It features nearly 30 works from our Collection, conveying a narrative of the evolution of modern American art. Additionally, in 2018, we collaborated with the State Department’s Office of Cultural Heritage to provide works for the post as part of our New Embassy Collections initiative. Artists featured throughout the embassy include:
Josef Albers • Anonymous • Saul Baizerman • John Baldessari • Tina Barney • Louisiana Bendolph • Mary Lee Bendolph • Loretta Bennett • Richard Benson • John Clem Clark • Alvin Langdon Coburn • John Singleton Copley • William Eggleston • Sidney B. Felsen • Theaster Gates • Sam Gilliam • Carmen Herrera • Yvonne Jacquette • Jasper Johns • Deborah Kass • Alex Katz • Ellsworth Kelly • Tomás Lasansky • Roy Lichtenstein • Glenn Ligon • Robert Mangold • Brice Marden • Kerry James Marshall • Julie Mehretu • Christine Merrill • Gwen Norton • Loretta Pettway • Ellen Phelan • Robert Rauschenberg • Avis Robinson • James Rosenquist • Susan Rothenberg • Ed Ruscha • Cindy Sherman • Frank Stella • Diana Walker • Andy Warhol • Carrie Mae Weems • William Wegman • Andrew Wyeth
As part of FAPE’s millennium GIFT TO THE NATION, funds were raised through the generosity of Janice H. Levin to create the Janice H. Levin Sculpture Garden. The garden, which features an Elie Nadelman sculpture, was designed by Boston landscape architect Morgan Wheelock and dedicated on October 12, 2000.
Elie Nadelman
Seated Woman with Raised Arm
c. 1924, cast 1964
Bronze, 3 feet, 10 inches x 1 foot, 7 inches x 2 feet, 1 inch
Photograph: Prudence Cuming Associates Limited
Louise Bourgeois generously donated Spider to FAPE’s millennium GIFT TO THE NATION. It was installed in the garden at Winfield House in 2010.
Gift of the artist, courtesy Cheim & Read, New York
In 2001 Leonore and Walter Annenberg established the Winfield House Gift, a $5 million endowment for the preservation and upkeep of the residence. Ambassador and Mrs. Annenberg underwrote extensive redecoration during their 1969 to 1974 tenure at Winfield House. One of their most significant contributions was the installation of hand-painted Chinese wallpaper in the Garden Room.
The work done by the Annenbergs ensured that future ambassadors could concentrate on preservation and conservation, not interior design. Requests are made by the State Department and presented to FAPE for approval. Projects that are consistent with the maintenance of the historical continuity of Winfield House receive funding from the endowment.
In 1999 as part of FAPE’s millennium project, GIFT TO THE NATION, Ambassador and Mrs. Walter Annenberg and Ambassador and Mrs. Charles Price donated funds for several restoration projects at Winfield House including the State Dining Room.
FAPE Chairman Jo Carole Lauder and artist Ellsworth Kelly in the Garden Room featuring the hand-painted Chinese wallpaper.
U.S. Embassy in London
33 Nine Elms Lane
London SW11 7US
United Kingdom
