Telling an Untold Story

Sir David Adjaye talks about his vision for the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC

In a city celebrated for its museums and cultural attractions, the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) stands out. Completed in 2016 and set on Washington, DC’s National Mall, the NMAAHC saw four major design firms – The Freelon Group, Adjaye Associates, Davis Brody Bond and the SmithGroupJJR – come together to create the American capital’s newest landmark.

Ghanaian-British architect Sir David Adjaye oversaw the formal development of the building design and was the creative force behind the building’s outer layer. His idea was to imagine a new kind of space that would function as more than a museum, while paying tribute to people who had often been left out of America’s historical narrative. “This project was really about prioritizing cultural narrative and identity,” Adjaye says. “I have always understood this project to be about people of one culture understanding the experience of people from a different culture. As such, it operates simultaneously as a museum, a memorial and a space for crosscultural collaboration and learning. It is a specific story with a universal application. The design represents African American heritage in a global context and is about celebrating a group of people who have given American culture so much.”

Sir David Adjaye

The museum’s ground level and entrance hall

The building continually references back to its context, with nine lenses, or cuts in the façade, overlooking key sites in the Capital"

His aim is particularly evident in his singular design for NMAAHC’s outer shell – the part that visitors first see when they come upon the building. “The tiered, inverted pyramid shape of the building was inspired by a traditional African column that features a crown – or corona – at its top,” Adjaye says, “and represents the aesthetic language the Africans brought to America as slaves.” He was also aware of the building’s enviable location, right on the National Mall and directly across the Washington Monument. “For NMAAHC, I wanted the design to respond to the building’s significant location on the National Mall. The corona is based on elements of the Washington Monument, closely matching the 17-degree angle of the capstone and the ornamental bronze lattice panel size, and pattern has been developed using the Monument stones as a reference. The building continually references back to its context, with nine lenses, or cuts in the façade, overlooking key sites in the capital.” Once inside the museum, those cuts in the façade allow glorious views of the city, particularly at sundown, when bits and pieces of Washington, DC – the Washington Monument, the White House and other Smithsonian museums – appear to shimmer and glow under the ever-changing light.

Some museum highlights include the Central Hall, a vast, open area that functions as the museum’s primary public space, and the 350-seat Oprah Winfrey Theater, where various performances are staged. The Contemplative Court, a light-filled memorial area with a raised overhead oculus and water cascading from the sky, offers visitors a peaceful space for reflection.

A year before NMAAHC opened to the public, Adjaye inaugurated another one of his landmark projects: Aïshti by the Sea in Lebanon. While the projects are different – one is a retail and art space, the other a cultural institution – there are undeniable similarities between the two. “I approached Aïshti as an opportunity to present a new building typology that combines the worlds of art and commerce. What was compelling to me was the opportunity to create these two distinctive programs and then, at considered moments, allow some dynamic interaction between them,” he says. “But in many ways, it was very much a strategy of curating two distinct environments and then allowing them to flow into each other in very specific ways. This idea of connections and journeys within a building was also part of the narrative strategy for NMAAHC.”

Beyond its architectural importance, Adjaye’s design for NMAAHC seeks to act as a bridge between communities, while shedding light on the cultural and artistic impact of African Americans on the United States. “A project with this much cultural resonance brought an inherent responsibility to do justice to a complex and significant history of a people whose stories are still too rarely told,” Adjaye says. “This museum was a long-awaited symbol of the African American contribution to the nation’s history and identity and means so much to so many people. That was weighty and challenging, but also invigorating and incredibly meaningful.”

View of the National Museum of African American History and Culture on Washington, DC’s National Mall

Contemplative Court

“Taking the Stage” exhibit

Words Marwan Naaman