A dimly lit new exhibit hall at the remodeled Smithsonian Museum of American History is devoted to the Star-Spangled Banner. (Courtesy of the National Museum of American History)
"A renovated US history museum retains its boxy essence" by Philip Kennicott, Washington Post | December 14, 2008
WASHINGTON - Heroic efforts to make the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History a more lovable building have been made, and the building has just as determinedly resisted them.
Look, I love history (true history, not government propaganda) as much as the next guy, but... $$$?
The renovated space that opened on Nov. 21 after an $85 million overhaul is an improvement in many obvious ways. Light flows in. The wings of the building connect with each other and a central core more logically. There will soon be a cafe with windows facing onto Constitution Avenue, linking the building to the city, and there are new restrooms, information centers, and an elegant stairway that ties the whole space together. On a purely architectural level: Mission accomplished....
How many MORTGAGES would that have paid off, America?
