National Building Museum

09/07/2021

It was an exciting weekend celebrating the dedication and opening of the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge in Washington, D.C.! Love the bridge and want a reminder of it at home? We've got a wonderful "bridgescape" in our museum shop for your walls!

Shop here: bit.ly/bridgescapes

Washington, D.C. loves bridges. With nearly a dozen major bridges spanning the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers and another dozen along Rock Creek Parkway, there’s a lot to love! 3 standouts are featured in these natural birch floating bridgescapes found in the Museum Shop at the National Building Museum. The newest is the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge being dedicated today. You can find the bridgescapes online at bit.ly/bridgescapes

#Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge #bridges #Washington DC #wallart #home décor

09/07/2021

Ah, September! We love the back to school vibe that is in the air, especially cool details on buildings as seen in this drawing of a school in Greely, CO from 1911. How’s this for an inspirational quote?

“This high school perpetuates the principles of our pioneers - justice, virtue, liberty, temperance and education. If you covet learning’s prize, climb her heights and take it; in ourselves our fortunes lie, life is what we make it.”

These drawings are from our Northwestern Terra Cotta Company collection and feature architectural terra cotta drawings created by the company from 1900-1954 . The fireproof qualities of this ancient, baked-clay form propelled its acceptance as a less expensive and lightweight alternative stone. Terra cotta’s popularity peaked in the 1920s, before being eclipsed by modernist curtain walls of glass, exposed steel, and concrete.

09/03/2021

A changing landscape captured over the span of 51 years by one photographer. What do these images of NYC's original World Trade Center and the rebuilt One World Trade Center make you feel?

"The Towers of WTC: 51 Years of Photographs by Camilo José Vergara" opens this Saturday, September 4th, and we are honored to be part of this ongoing collaboration as the 20th anniversary of 9/11 approaches.

President and Executive Director Aileen Fuchs shares this about Vergara's work:

“For more than 30 years, the World Trade Center defined the Lower Manhattan skyline and became truly iconic in ways that few buildings have, and in their absence after that terrible day in 2001, a new skyline has emerged. Vergara’s camera and keen eye have captured this unique downtown space across five decades, and we are proud to partner with him to share them with the public.”

Learn more and plan your visit: https://tinyurl.com/5825r7rt

09/02/2021

We make museums fun for kids! Executive Director Aileen Fuchs and daughter Faith are the cover stars of this month's Washington Family Magazine.

Aileen chats with the magazine about raising twins, relocating to D.C., and her vision for our Museum. Spoiler: It's not just for architects!

"It's that interior sense of scale that is just unrivaled anywhere and brings out the kid in everybody" says Aileen about our Museum. We couldn't agree more!

Click here to read our new September issue all about the arts! 👇

http://digital.washingtonfamily.com/issues/September-2021/index.html

Here's what else you'll find inside our digital magazine:

🥾 Local hiking spots
🎭 Profile of Acting for Young People
🏛 Tips for visiting museums with kids
👩‍👧‍👦 Q&A with National Building Museum's Aileen Fuchs
🕹 Books for young gamers
➕ And much more!

09/01/2021

National Building Museum - The Adventure Family

Thanks Adventure Moms for their recent visit to our museum and the write up. We love seeing families enjoy our museum!

https://theadvfam.com/national-building-museum/

The National Building Museum in Washington DC is a gathering place for families to explore, learn, play & impact the world around us.

08/31/2021

"The Towers of WTC: 51 Years of Photographs by Camilo José Vergara" opens this Saturday. Vergara is one of the nation’s foremost urban documentarians. This exhibition is presented as part of an ongoing collaboration with the photographer featuring his images of the World Trade Center.

Driven to document America’s inner cities, Vergara, who was born in Santiago, Chile, began recording New York City’s urban landscape in 1970, the year he settled there. The exhibition, which spans the years 1970 to 2021 and includes 52 images, is a look at a unique downtown space that has changed so dramatically since the attacks.

Vergara was honored with a National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama in 2012 and was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2002.

Learn more and plan your visit: https://tinyurl.com/5825r7rt

08/30/2021

We're thrilled to be a community partner in our upcoming architecture installation "Sukkah City x DC"!

Alongside the Lillian & Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum and in collaboration with the Edlavitch DCJCC , this public display of creative sukkahs designed by notable architects will be on view at the National Building Museum’s West Lawn and the EDCJCC campus September 18-October 3rd.

The Jewish holiday of Sukkot is the inspiration for Sukkah City x DC, an outdoor public architecture installation of creative impermanent structures in which to share meals, entertain, sleep, and rejoice.

Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/23pmrkku

We're thrilled to be a community partner in our upcoming architecture installation "Sukkah City x DC"!

Alongside the Lillian & Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum and in collaboration with the Edlavitch DCJCC , this public display of creative sukkahs designed by notable architects will be on view at the National Building Museum’s West Lawn and the EDCJCC campus September 18-October 3rd.

The Jewish holiday of Sukkot is the inspiration for Sukkah City x DC, an outdoor public architecture installation of creative impermanent structures in which to share meals, entertain, sleep, and rejoice.

Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/23pmrkku

08/26/2021

Mabel O. Wilson announced winner of 2021 Vincent Scully Prize

Mabel O. Wilson announced winner of 2021 Vincent Scully Prize

Mabel O. Wilson, a Columbia University-based architect, scholar, researcher, artist, and curator, has been awarded the 2021 Vincent Scully Prize.

08/26/2021

As the we approach the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, we are honored to present our new exhibition, "The Towers of the WTC: 51 Years of Photographs by Camilo José Vergara", on September 4th at the Museum.

Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/5825r7rt

As the we approach the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, we are honored to present our new exhibition, "The Towers of the WTC: 51 Years of Photographs by Camilo José Vergara", on September 4th at the Museum.

Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/5825r7rt

08/24/2021

We are pleased to announce that Mabel O. Wilson, the Nancy and George E. Rupp Professor of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University in the City of New York, is the 23rd recipient of the Museum’s annual Vincent Scully Prize. Established in 1999, the Scully Prize recognizes excellence in practice, scholarship, or criticism in architecture, historic preservation, and urban design.

“I am deeply humbled and honored that my contributions to the field of architecture have been recognized by this year's jury for the National Building Museum’s Vincent Scully Prize. The arrival of a global pandemic, rampant houselessness, climate catastrophe, and a profound racial reckoning has made more urgent not only how we build more ethically but also for whom do we build more equitably in a twenty-first century world,” Wilson stated upon learning of the Prize.

The award will be presented to Wilson on October 19 at an in-person event at the Museum.

Learn More: https://tinyurl.com/2mxwtfw8

[Image Description: Mabel O. Wilson is pictured in a minimalist black and white portrait. Mabel wears a black turtleneck shirt with long sleeves and glasses. They are smiling at the camera with their hands folded on the table in front of them.]

We are pleased to announce that Mabel O. Wilson, the Nancy and George E. Rupp Professor of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University in the City of New York, is the 23rd recipient of the Museum’s annual Vincent Scully Prize. Established in 1999, the Scully Prize recognizes excellence in practice, scholarship, or criticism in architecture, historic preservation, and urban design.

“I am deeply humbled and honored that my contributions to the field of architecture have been recognized by this year's jury for the National Building Museum’s Vincent Scully Prize. The arrival of a global pandemic, rampant houselessness, climate catastrophe, and a profound racial reckoning has made more urgent not only how we build more ethically but also for whom do we build more equitably in a twenty-first century world,” Wilson stated upon learning of the Prize.

The award will be presented to Wilson on October 19 at an in-person event at the Museum.

Learn More: https://tinyurl.com/2mxwtfw8

[Image Description: Mabel O. Wilson is pictured in a minimalist black and white portrait. Mabel wears a black turtleneck shirt with long sleeves and glasses. They are smiling at the camera with their hands folded on the table in front of them.]

08/23/2021

Ready for more yoga in the Great Hall? Join instructor Beth Wolfe for an all-level yoga class under our Corinthian columns in the Great Hall. Last date for the summer is August 29th.

All are welcome--the class is open to brand new and seasoned practitioners alike! No previous yoga experience required. Please purchase tickets in advance and BYO yoga mat.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/yoga-at-the-national-building-museum-tickets-155682034155

[Image Description: A bright room is filled with people practicing yoga. A large group of people put a foot forward as they stretch. Yoga mats are under their feet and they wear athletic clothing.]

Ready for more yoga in the Great Hall? Join instructor Beth Wolfe for an all-level yoga class under our Corinthian columns in the Great Hall. Last date for the summer is August 29th.

All are welcome--the class is open to brand new and seasoned practitioners alike! No previous yoga experience required. Please purchase tickets in advance and BYO yoga mat.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/yoga-at-the-national-building-museum-tickets-155682034155

[Image Description: A bright room is filled with people practicing yoga. A large group of people put a foot forward as they stretch. Yoga mats are under their feet and they wear athletic clothing.]

08/11/2021

🚨We’ve got a family workshop coming up with Foon Sham, creator of the Maze of Knowledge!

Join us August 21 from 1-3pm to make your own small, wooden structures to take home. Limited tickets available. Registration for members starts Thursday, and opens to the public this Friday.

Have you visited the Maze of Knowledge yet? You’ve got less than a month left to visit the exhibition before it leaves the Museum!

This exhibition is part of our Summer Block Party that’s generously sponsored by AARP and CoStar Group.

Register here: http://go.nbm.org/site/Calendar/196225207?view=Detail&id=127411

🚨We’ve got a family workshop coming up with Foon Sham, creator of the Maze of Knowledge!

Join us August 21 from 1-3pm to make your own small, wooden structures to take home. Limited tickets available. Registration for members starts Thursday, and opens to the public this Friday.

Have you visited the Maze of Knowledge yet? You’ve got less than a month left to visit the exhibition before it leaves the Museum!

This exhibition is part of our Summer Block Party that’s generously sponsored by AARP and CoStar Group.

Register here: http://go.nbm.org/site/Calendar/196225207?view=Detail&id=127411

08/08/2021

Exhibition "Alan Karchmer: The Architects’ Photographer" at our Museum displays photographs of world-renowned architecture. Karchmer has a lot of tricks to create stunning images and Washington City Paper shares more:

https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/525940/city-lights-alan-karchmer-on-photographing-architecture/

Exhibition "Alan Karchmer: The Architects’ Photographer" at our Museum displays photographs of world-renowned architecture. Karchmer has a lot of tricks to create stunning images and Washington City Paper shares more:

https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/525940/city-lights-alan-karchmer-on-photographing-architecture/

08/06/2021

The Truss has arrived!

What a moment it was to see Handshouse Studio & The Catholic University of America’s Notre Dame de Paris Truss Project arrive at the National Building Museum! The process began early morning when team members wheeled pieces through the DC streets from the National Mall. Installation was smooth and it’s finally up in our Great Hall for you to enjoy.

See it for yourself at the Museum through mid-September.

This exhibition is part of our Summer Block Party that’s generously sponsored by AARP and CoStar Group.

08/06/2021

Notre Dame de Paris Truss Project / Truss Raising

The Notre Dame de Paris Truss Project team put the final truss pieces in place and set up the rigging to hang the structure. Now on view in our Great Hall through September 16!

http://go.nbm.org/insideout

08/06/2021

The @notredamedeparis Truss Project is in our Great Hall and being assembled. Watch it live —> go.nbm.org/trussraising

Tune in at 2:00 pm when the truss will be raised!

#notredamedeparis / #truss / #engineering / #timberframing / #cathedral

The @notredamedeparis Truss Project is in our Great Hall and being assembled. Watch it live —> go.nbm.org/trussraising

Tune in at 2:00 pm when the truss will be raised!

#notredamedeparis / #truss / #engineering / #timberframing / #cathedral

08/06/2021

The Notre Dame de Paris Truss Project has arrived in the Great Hall and is now being assembled. Watch live at http://go.nbm.org/trussraising thanks to our partners EarthCam.

At ***2:00 pm*** the truss will be raised and hung in the SE corner, shown below. Watch at the URL above or live here on Facebook.

http://go.nbm.org/insideout

The Notre Dame de Paris Truss Project has arrived in the Great Hall and is now being assembled. Watch live at http://go.nbm.org/trussraising thanks to our partners EarthCam.

At ***2:00 pm*** the truss will be raised and hung in the SE corner, shown below. Watch at the URL above or live here on Facebook.

http://go.nbm.org/insideout

08/06/2021

The Gun Violence Memorial Project is collecting items in Washington, DC today and tomorrow.

Today's opportunity to donate is at The Families First DC Sucess center. Tomorrow they will be at Anacostia Arts Center. For more information visit www.gunviolencememorialproject.org.

This project is done In partnership with MASS Design Group.

The Gun Violence Memorial Project is collecting items in Washington, DC today and tomorrow.

Today's opportunity to donate is at The Families First DC Sucess center. Tomorrow they will be at Anacostia Arts Center. For more information visit www.gunviolencememorialproject.org.

This project is done In partnership with MASS Design Group.

08/05/2021

The Gun Violence Memorial Project is collecting items for the memorial over the next three days. Today in Virginia you can donate at the Jubilee Center in Lynchburg, VA. For more information and where to go tomorrow and Saturday, visit www.gunviolencememorialproject.org.

This project is done In partnership with MASS Design Group.

The Gun Violence Memorial Project is collecting items for the memorial over the next three days. Today in Virginia you can donate at the Jubilee Center in Lynchburg, VA. For more information and where to go tomorrow and Saturday, visit www.gunviolencememorialproject.org.

This project is done In partnership with MASS Design Group.

08/05/2021

The journey of the Notre Dame de Paris Truss Project this week has been exciting to watch! It was raised on the grounds of The Catholic University of America before arriving at the National Mall and Memorial Parks this afternoon. Tomorrow it arrives at the Museum for another epic moment!

Handshouse Studio organized the project as a gesture of goodwill to Notre Dame following the 2019 fire that left the cathedral badly damaged.

See it for yourself at the National Building Museum through mid-September.

[Image Descriptions: A collection of photos shows the Truss in various locations. The Truss is featured before, during, and after being raised. Participants in blue shirts and hard hats are seen in the photos as they work to get it up. Tools are also featured.]

08/05/2021

The Truss is being raised on the National Mall before making its way to the Museum tomorrow!