The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation has named Studio Gang, Henning Larsen, and Snøhetta as the finalists for a forthcoming $100 million research and interpretive center dedicated to the nation's 26th president.
Slated for a 60-acre site located in the Badlands of North Dakota, the forthcoming library complex was initiated by the state's legislature in 2019 and fundraising is currently underway to help push the project into design and construction, The Bismarck Tribune reports.
Regarding the project, Michael Sørensen, Partner and director of Henning Larsen’s New York office writes, “We’re deeply honored to be part of this historic opportunity and are looking forward to immersing ourselves in the majesty of the Badlands,” adding, “For us, the architecture and the landscape must embody the spirit of the Badlands, the spirit and sanctity of place – now, tomorrow and for generations to come." The Henning Larsen team includes landscape architects Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects, among other project consultants.
Craig Dykers, founding partner of Snøhetta, described the firm's inspiration for the project as one rooted in Roosevelt's connections to landscape appreciation and preservation. Dykers writes, "Theodore Roosevelt overcame many challenges in his life and translated his experiences into a deep appreciation for the value of our natural resources and the power of our landscapes. His conservation ambitions have even greater relevance today and we are so proud to be a part of fulfilling his vision. For the past 30 years, our design studio has carried these same principles of caring deeply and thinking boldly throughout our practice.”
Jeanne Gang, principal and founder of Studio Gang Architects, added, “Studio Gang is driven by the desire to connect people with each other and their natural surroundings. I have personally been inspired both by Teddy Roosevelt's pursuit of conservation, but also by the Badland's majestic landscape and ecology. I look forward to working with OLIN and our team to realize a Presidential Library that unfolds his story as a means to connect visitors deeply with nature and to foster a new generation of citizens and leaders.”
The finalists beat out nine other firms, including Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Ennead, and Mass Design Group, who were announced as semi-finalists late last month.
According to an announcement from the library foundation, the selected teams will submit design concepts by July 17th. The designs will go on view to the public August 10th and a final, winning design will be selected in September.
8 Comments
hmm. i work mostly abroad, and i'm the child of immigrants. i appreciate the perspective of people from wherever they come and do believe the general culture is enriched by diverse views.
but i feel like a presidential memorial is fundamentally a narrative about the perception of that figure within a country's history. that's something that ought to be designed by an architect from that country to be meaningful. preferably one with more than just a relevant portfolio but also a strong viewpoint and interest in the subject. otherwise this risks being just a generic space for cultural exhibits from a firm that does (very fine) generic cultural spaces.
part of the unique power of architecture is in revealing what a society thinks of itself. the shortlist on this suggests a society unwilling to support self-scrutiny.
studio gang may offer something different - at least it would be interesting to see how an individual with Gang's affinity for animal welfare memorializes a man whose fondness for conservation included killing 11,000 animals on safari (wikipedia!). how an individual addresses these kind of paradoxes can be illuminating.
i'm cynical and so expect then the generic non-statement about him will ultimately prevail over anything with complexity or insight.
Taken to its logical extreme, isn't this what gives us RAMSA neo-classical bs for the George Bush presidential library?
Thinking about some interesting precedent - Edward Durell Stone wasn't necessarily a "great" architect but got tons of government commissions because he was seen as politically beneficial - a poor dirt farmer from America's heartland who made good.
I'd argue pomo BS from a wealthy NY socialite gives a very appropriate narrative to Bush. Not all presidents deserve timeless and profound memorials :P
on the whole there aren't many good precedents in this specific project type. The most reasonable ones have been where presidents' houses / estates get repurposed for memorials. it has a nice humbleness that probably isn't suited to our modern conception of the presidency though. nixon and reagen both did well in this. ford's is fittingly lousy.
on the whole there aren't many good precedents in this specific project type. The most reasonable ones have been where presidents' houses / estates get repurposed for memorials. it has a nice humbleness that probably isn't suited to our modern conception of the presidency though. nixon and reagen both did well in this. ford's is fittingly lousy.
IM Pei is the obvious comparison. I'd say though as an adult immigrant who knew Kennedy's wife he had a very relevant understanding of America and Kennedy. It's not impossible a foreign designer would have a valuable individual perspective on a particular president, but I don't see any obvious connection here.
Maybe that outsider perspective makes one focus on the essential and skip the local trap of grand sentimental symbolism? American offices use plenty of foreign labourers anyways to come up with their designs, Norwegian Snøhetta has an American office for over 15 years, Danish Henning Larson not sure how long, and American Jeanne Gang got her training partly at OMA in Rotterdam, ETH in Switzerland and Versailles in France, so don't know what an American architect would necessarily do better for a president of mixed Dutch, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, German and French heritage.
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