Today in Pictures - National Gallery of Art

The National Gallery of Art has a new exhibit: its exterior. The 33-year-old East Building is in the midst of a major renovation that recently included the removal and reinstallation of the marble veneer - 16,200 Tennessee pink marble panels with new supports. Each five foot wide, two foot high, three-inch-thick panel weighs about 450 pounds. The I.M. Pei design, completed in 1978, is not holding up nearly as well as the John Russell Pope design of the West Building. A "systemic structural failure" of the facade's design prompted Congressional emergency aid (too big to fail?) and scaffolding to protect pedestrians. On the upside, DC is treated to an architectural undressing thanks in part to an open, vertical-access scaffolding system. Work is expected to be completed by spring 2014.






Photographs by Rey Lopez. 
 Washington D.C. real estate development news

Museums on the Mall: Latinos Throw Their Hat in the Ring

Feeling ethnically unrepresented by the nation's newfound homage to ethnicity? One group may have the answer for you: The Latino American Museum Commission (LAMC) hopes to build the National Museum of the American Latino on or near the National Mall, and is in the final stage of figuring out just where it should go.

The new museum is intended to "create a home for the historical artifacts, images, and personal stories documenting over 500 years of American Latino contributions to the United States" and will "serve as an educational tool for the thousands who visit the museum each year, as well as instilling [sic] a sense of pride in the Latino community..." The LAMC was formed by an act of Congress in 2008.

The Museum Commission initially considered and "fully vetted" over 30 sites throughout the Capitol area, narrowing it down to 9 in November 2009, before finally paring it down to 4 sites, all on or near the Mall, as it happens. At yesterday's National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) meeting, the LAMC presented the four finalists. Henry R. Muñoz, the Chair of the LAMC, told the NCPC review team that after canvassing Latinos nationwide "there is a clear preference for a site on the Mall." The NCPC expects to issue its opinion in August, at which point the plans will be sent to Congress. The Commission hopes to find 359,000 s.f. - 310,000 s.f. close to the monumental core for exhibits and 49,000 s.f. located remotely for storage and office space. Though the LAMC recently signed four contracts to kickstart development and planning, Muñoz acknowledged the long process ahead, saying "we'll feel fortunate if that timeline can be shortened to ten years."

In no particular order, the Commission is considering:

1. The Yates Building at 1400 Independence Avenue, SW (pictured right): The administrative portion would fit into the historic Yates building, and a 165,000-s.f. building would be built on the Mall to the north, bisected by Independence Avenue. The museum would offer an entrance on the Mall and would potentially connect underground to the Yates building. The rough designs show the new structure mirroring the height and footprint of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

2. The Whitten Building at 14th & Independence: The LAMC offered up the adjacent parking lot for a new building. This plan also includes building two stories on top of the Whitten building, which the design team likened to the Tate in London. This design would deliver 310,000 s.f., 49,000 s.f. less than the desired amount of space.

3. The Arts and Industries Building (pictured left): The oldest of the Smithsonian buildings offers 99,000 s.f. that would be incorporated as a "public reception area" because it is too narrow for galleries and lacks climate control or proper acoustics for performances. This plan has two options, one in which the Arts and Industries building remains intact with a two-story museum below-grade, the other would use the main building for administrative purposes and as an entrance from the mall, but create a connection to a new annex building.

4. Capitol Site: This proposed site, across from the Botanical Gardens, was envisioned by the McMillan Commission to hold a museum but remains empty. Currently under the control of the Architect of the Capitol, the site would utilize the same footprint as proposed in the McMillan Plan, with an entrance off Pennsylvania Avenue, offering three stories above grade and one below. At 252,000 s.f. it would be the smallest of the proposed buildings.

Fear not, Lithuanians and Somoans, you too may someday have your chance.

Washington DC real estate and development news

House Passes Bill for Another Museum

Finding itself surrounded by an insufficient number of museums, the House of Representatives this month passed H.R. 1700 to add another museum along the National Mall. "The National Women's History Museum Act of 2009," co-sponsored by Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and 50 other Members, directs the General Services Administration (GSA) to sell property for the construction of a National Women's History Museum to research collect, and "showcase the contributions of women in professional fields," and "honor women's roles in nurturing their families and communities."

The agreement gives the museum administrator and federal government 6 months to work out a fair value for the land and sign a purchase agreement; the GSA has estimated the value of land at $60m. Though the site, bounded by 12^th Street, SW, Independence Avenue, and C Street, is currently used only as a parking lot, the GSA has not declared the property "surplus," complicating the legislative process. Norton took the bill to full committee mark-up after defending against a last-minute "scoring rule" raised by the Congressional Budget Office, though the bill would maintain budget neutrality. The bill now heads for the Senate for approval.

"Women have waited too long for their own museum in the nation's capital," Norton said, adding that the Museum "has significant potential to bring new visitors to the District, and to encourage others to stay longer." Let the CBO try and score that.

Freelon to Design African American History Museum

The Smithsonian Institute announced today (via their insanely popular Smithsonian Channel Blog) that the Freelon Group, Adjaye Associates and Davis Brody Bond in association with SmithGroup have been selected to design the National Museum of African American History and Culture. To be constructed at 15^th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, the 350,000 square foot museum will stand on the very last vacant parcel of the National Mall.

Since the prospective designs went public last month, the winning team has gone on to beat out a formidable list of competitors that included Diller Scofidio and Renfro and KlingStubbins;" Devrouax and Purnell Architects, Pei Cobb Freed and Partners; Moshe Safdie and Associates and Sulton Campbell Britt & Associates), Foster and Partners and URS and Moody Nolan Inc. and Antoine Predock Architect.

“[We] set up a poll on the Smithsonian Channel Blog asking readers who they think should win and although the Moody Nolan was the clear favorite, another design took home the win,” said Filippa Fenton of Smithsonian Networks. So much for democracy.

According to the Smithsonian, the selected “bronze-tiered design” (aka “the corona”) represents a “melding of cultural symbols, traditions and movements” from “the working landscapes of the American south to the crowns of Nigerian Yoruba artifacts.”

Construction of the $500 million complex is currently scheduled to begin in 2012. For a detailed look at Washington’s soon-to-be newest museum, check out the swanky virtual tour of the design, courtesy of the Smithsonian.

BZA Approval for Armenian Museum

The DC Board of Zoning Adjustment recently approved plans for the development of the former Federal-American National Bank at 615 14th Street, N.W. into the Armenian Genocide Museum of America. The board unanimously approved plans for a complete restoration and renovation of the five story 50,000 s.f. landmarked bank into 18,000 s.f. of exhibit space in what will be, "The premier institution in the United States dedicated to educating American and international audiences about the Armenian Genocide and its continuing consequences."

Designed by Martinez & Johnson Architecture, the museum will be two blocks from White House, within walking distance of the Smithsonian and down the street from the US Holocaust Museum, a location that symbolically fuses politics, genocide, and education.

Exhibits will be constructed in the two-story banking hall as well as the fourth floor. According to the architect's plans, the exterior will also get a face lift that will include masonry work, general cleaning, and the reconstruction of first floor storefronts. The museum is scheduled for a 2010 opening and will include interactive exhibits, "state-of-the-art" technology, online programs, and places of reflection.

The museum's website compares the Armenian Genocide, which started in 1915, to that of the Holocaust, Darfur, and Rwanda.

Armenian Museum to Renovate & Build Near White House

At the close of last week, the Historic Preservation Review Board gave unanimous approval to a concept design for the new Armenian Genocide Museum of America, which will take up its residence at the former Federal-American National Bank at 615 14th Street, NW. DC-based Martinez & Johnson Architecture designed the restoration and addition to the limestone-clad historic bank, designated as a landmark on both the DC and National Register.

The Armenian Genocide Museum of America will fully restore the 'elevated bank', a term used for banks that house their main hall on the second floor, both inside and out, to its former Neoclassical glory. Exterior workwill include the removal of a superimposed facade that Hahn Shoe Store, the longtime occupant of the street-level space, had constructed long ago, as well as a general restoration of the building's "vault-like exterior design," as described by HPRB.

Along with exterior upgrades, AGMA will restore the historic two-story banking hall, along with many other non-historic areas such as the former boardroom on the building's top level. According to Rouben Adalian, Director of the Armenian National Institute, the fact that the building is being turned into a museum will actually enhance the historical restoration process because so much focus is being devoted to the building's aesthetics.

With the intent of avoiding unnecessary stress to the historic travertine stairs from 14th street up to the central door and to accommodate the crowds it will surely attract, AGMA will construct a modern glass tower on an neighboring vacant lot to the east of the future-museum. The new building, which will be equal in height to the former bank, will serve to circulate the public through the exhibit, housing stairs, elevators, public amenities and generally serve as a public entrance. Said Adalian: "It will be a modern glass tower that will complement the historic building and a lot of care and attention is being given to make sure that it is a proper fit."

"The reason the museum board has been inclined toward a glass tower, something that lets in a lot of light, has a symbolic meaning, to the extent that genocide is a horrible story to recount. The old building, which is a very closed structure with dark interior spaces, seems to be a fitting setting for telling a dark story. And the glass tower stands in a contrast to that in order to let in light on the subject matter, to invite the public to come and visit and to learn from this terrible event and about the value of human rights."

The museum will be devoted to the Armenian culture, and as an educational exhibit of the genocide of over a million ethnic Armenians (plus some Greeks for good measure) by the Ottomans, starting in 1915; a fact still hotly contested by the Turkish Republic.