African American Museum on Jefferson

[smeagolsfree]

I thought that there was a thread on this one but I think it has only been mentioned in the project thread.

Here is an article form the Tennessean today and a rendering of the project that will be on the corner of Rosa Parks and Jefferson @ the BiCentennial Mall.

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar...EWS01/804170386

[barakat]

What a boring looking box of a design. It kinda reminds me of the Lentz Public Health Center. It does nothing to engage the pedestrian along those mostly blank walls. I'm guessing the giant suppository will sit at the corner of Jefferson and Rosa Parks. I'm assuming the long face will sit along Jefferson? There's no clear indication. Anyway it should be more transparent.

[ariesjow]

You took the words right out of my mouth. This design looks really lame. Let's hope it's preliminary as I was hoping for something much, much better than this. "Giant suppository."

[franktown]

Wow... I was somehow hoping for something cool, exciting, modern or even okay... but this is just... blah. I was really hoping for more.

[RON-E]

This project could be so much more! it has NO street level presence at all. what a let down....

[franktown]

The more I look at it, the more potential I see that was missed. Why no water feature? Why don't the pictures go down to the bottom? Why isn't there something that's permeable/glass? Why isn't there anything interactive/changing? I mean this is just like a fortress!

[Shuzilla]

I think the building was designed for the automobile far more than pedestrians. The large imaged behind/in the glass are like bilboards trying to catch the view of passing motorists. While I don't have a big problem with that, the lack of pedestrian interaction is a reasonable criticism. This museum can address both cars and pedestrians. My thought is to leave the "billboards" and collonade on the street but flip the "C" shaped plan so the "C" points to the road. That way, visitors could walk through columns, beneath the huge pictures (applied to mesh), transitioning into a courtyard surrounded on three sides by the museum. Put a water feature and sculpture inside the courtyard for a grand entrance. Stepping up into the courtyard would be a plus.