Begin with the Past: Building the National Museum of African American History and Culture

by Mabel O. Wilson, Lonnie G. Bunch III (Foreword by)

Overview

Rising on the National Mall next to the Washington Monument, the National Museum of African American History and Culture is a tiered bronze beacon inviting everyone to learn about the richness and diversity of the African American experience and how it helped shape this nation. Begin with the Past: Building the National Museum of African American History and Culture is the story of how this unparalleled museum found its place in the nation’s collective memory and on its public commons.
 
Begin with the Past presents the long history of efforts to build a permanent place to collect, study, and present African American history and culture. In 2003 the museum was officially established at long last, yet the work of the museum was only just beginning. The book traces the appointment of the director, the selection of the site, and the process of conceiving, designing, and constructing a public monument to the achievements and contributions of African Americans. The careful selection of architects, designers, and engineers culminated in a museum that embodies African American sensibilities about space, form, and material and incorporates rich cultural symbols into the design of the building and its surrounding landscape. The National Museum of African American History and Culture is a place for all Americans to understand our past and embrace our future, and this book is a testament to the inspiration and determination that went into creating this unique place.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781588347428
Publisher:	Smithsonian Institution Press
Publication date:	11/29/2022
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	528,760
Product dimensions:	8.04(w) x 10.01(h) x 0.46(d)

About the Author

MABEL O. WILSON is an associate professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation and a senior fellow at the Institute for Research in African American Studies. Her research investigates space and cultural memory in black America, race and modern architecture, and new technologies and the social production of space. She has written numerous articles and books, most recently Negro Building: Black Americans in the World of Fairs and Museums.

Table of Contents

Foreword 6

Introduction 8

Part 1 An African American Museum for All

Chapter 1 In Search of a Memorial 20

Collecting Black History and Culture 24

A Black Museum Movement Spreads Across the Land 30

Chapter 2 Drawing Up the Plans 36

Chapter 3 The Vision for a New National Museum 48

Chapter 4 Architecture Tells Stories 60

Breaking New Ground 68

Part 2 Memory of Place

Chapter 5 Crafting Memory and Meaning 72

Chapter 6 A Shining Example 78

Landscapes of Memory 90

A Welcoming Porch 102

Black and Green 108

Chapter 7 Inside the African American Story 112

Celebrating Community and Culture 126

Conclusion 136

Index 138

Photo Credits 141

Acknowledgments 142

Editorial Reviews

The Architect's Newspaper
Commissioned by the [National Museum of African American History and Culture] to mark its recent launch, Wilson delivers with a history of its genesis from century-long civic intent to the intricate teamwork of curators, scholars, and (above all) architects and engineers, who together shaped its conceptual vision. This is an all-too-rare look at what a modern building requires in its realization, especially when the stakes are no less than the historic record itself and a site at the hinge of L’Enfant’s plan. [...] The chapter “Inside the African American Story” stands out as a standard of well-explained problem solving; its welcome inclusion of design elevations and blueprints cements this comprehensive intent. What the author describes as “a spiritual feeling like that of a cathedral,” comes as much from a soaring interior of long vistas as the combined efforts the book affirms. This is a building that blends strife with hope as its historical mandate deserved. Wilson’s book helps show us not only why but how.

From the Publisher

01/01/2017
The origin story of the museum, this history contextualizes the institution as visitors see it today, describing how, after its official establishment in 2003, its director was chosen, site selected, building designed, collection gathered, and exhibitions produced.

Library Journal