The general concept of a Museum
A museum invites us to embark on a journey through time, culture, and innovation. It is a place of curiosity and wisdom that flows our vision through the past, present, and future. Taking us through memories to visualise the aspired future with the collaboration of diverse concepts and technological advances.
Museums are differently categorised depending on their focus and purpose. There are art museums, science museums, historical museums, etc. Each of these museums brings us a different concept regarding the museum’s architecture, materiality, location, etc. It could either focus on the past like The Partition Museum in Amritsar or like The Museum of the Future in Dubai. The oldest museum was built 2500 years ago and discovered in 1925 by archeologist Leonard Wooley.
About The National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian acts as an architectural narrative. The building is sculpted by the combined concepts of wind and water, dominated by the alignment of planets. Right from its materials to its form, it represents and symbolises the history and culture of space by taking us through a story that reflects the conversations of the indigenous people in the Western Hemisphere.
Located in Washington DC with a site of 4.25 acres, as native Americans strongly value the relationship between humans and the environment, the materials and form are developed in a way to create an ongoing reference to nature. With an area of 260000 sq/ft, this building’s soaring dome at the entry represents a central gathering area. SmithGroup completed this project in 2004 as a tribute to Native American history and culture.
To bring the connection between nature and humans, the primary material used was golden-coloured Kasota limestone meant to appear like a rock. Marked by the “grandfather” rock formations, the building is oriented in the cardinal directions that are brought in from each of the four corners in the Western hemisphere.
“From the very beginning in design, the aesthetic was to reflect a river-washed stone with the rusticated fractured stone in the lower tiers to the smoother more regular stone at the top of the building, like a boulder in a rushing river speaks to the Native American culture.… The ‘Grandfather Rock’ that starts the water feature is oriented the same way it was found in the woods, the red rock, prisms, and copper wall in the Potomac all reflect the Native American connection to the natural environment and artistry,” Ross noted.
In and around the museum
The museum grounds are rich in imagery. This imagery depicts culture and symbolism. A symbolic spiral moon interweaves with the granite paving pattern in the south entry plaza. The curving paths between meadows and croplands visually blend the planting areas to evoke the illusion of moving through a larger landscape.
The entrance is protected by a cantilevered roof inspired by natural rock formations utilised by native communities as protection from harsh sun, wind, and rain. Entering the building means stepping into the 120 ft high Potomac Atrium. The distinctive feature of this building is that the entrance is from the fourth floor of the structure. The openness of the atrium and hallways encouraged invited people to stay longer.
The east entry plaza invites pedestrians into the museum as it spills out onto the sidewalk. Beyond the entry plaza, a curving pool wraps the outdoor amphitheatre that leads visitors around the building to the waterfall at the northwest entrance. This entrance even welcomes visitors from the Mall due to its dynamic waterfall and curving stream that encourage people engagement. The waterfall looks like it is a part of the land and the building with its flowy nature and scenic engagement.
The southern edge acts as a densely planted boundary of the museum grounds. It is marked by cultural and symbolic art. “Always Becoming” is a collection of sculptures made by Nora Naranjo-Morse from clay and natural materials. These sculptures change over time as they are exposed to the weather and seasons. They show how things constantly change and are connected to the natural world.
The five-storey structure is a distinctive curvilinear building and also is very particular in its exterior landscape, being home to more than 27,000 trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants representing 145 species. Dominated by curvilinear walls and halls, the galleries here are disassociated from the rest of the world to protect light-sensitive artefacts.
There are no rigid spaces or rooms, the spaces flow with no hard edges.To create a sense of freedom in movement, the architects have not concentrated on the placement of interior walls to bifurcate the spaces, rather they focused on the concept of fluidity in movement of the people for them to feel the essence of the space to entirety.
Among all the Smithsonian Institution’s museums today, the National Museum of the American Indian is the most visited and is located on the National Mall facing the U.S. Capitol.
REFERENCES:
- Encyclopædia Britannica. National Museum of the American Indian. 05/04/2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/National-Museum-of-the-American-Indian
- Cmorris. Zahner. Katie Barone https://e5awgs3wuhi.exactdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/24152838/logo.svg. The Smithsonian nmai. 15/08/2016. https://www.azahner.com/works/nmai
- National Museum of the American Indian | Clark Construction. National Museum of the American Indian. https://www.clarkconstruction.com/our-work/projects/national-museum-american-indian
- WA. World Architecture Community. National Museum of the American Indian. 22/07/2014. https://worldarchitecture.org/architecture-news/czpgh/national-museum-of-the-american-indian.html#google_vignette
IMAGE REFERENCES:
- https://www.clarkconstruction.com/our-work/projects/national-museum-american-indian
- https://www.expedia.com/pictures/district-of-columbia/washington-dc/national-museum-of-the-american-indian.d6068541?view=large-gallery&photo=486374
- National Museum of the American Indian. Visit Washington, DC. https://americanindian.si.edu/visit/reopening
- Collections search | national museum of the American Indian. http://www.americanindian.si.edu/searchcollections/contact.aspx
