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Obamas choose New York architects to lead design of their presidential library and museum
POSTED 01 Jul 2016 . BY Kim Megson
The Obama Foundation was launched by the Obamas in 2014 to 'inspire the next generation of young leaders across the world' Credit: Susan Walsh/AP/PA Images
Barack and Michelle Obama have chosen the architectural team of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects and Partners (TWBTA) and Interactive Design Architects (IDEA) to design the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago.
When built, the centre will include a library holding the presidential archives, a museum focusing on the Obama presidency and space for initiatives that advance the foundation’s public mission to promote global progress.
TWBTA, based in New York, and IDEA, based in Chicago, will lead a multidisciplinary team that may include as many as 20 other firms engaged in various specialty areas. The Obama Foundation will manage the design and construction of the Center in collaboration with a project management team yet to be named.
“TWBTA stood out in their commitment to exploring the best ways of creating an innovative centre for action that inspires communities and individuals to take on our biggest challenges,” said the foundation’s chair, Martin Nesbitt. “IDEA bring local knowledge and a track record for delivering excellence to large, complex civic projects.”
Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, the husband-and-wife founding partners of TWBTA, said: "We believe that architecture is the coming together of art and use, and can bring a sense of grace to life. The greatest buildings are places which contribute to more than their particular task by elevating and improving the world.
“We are deeply moved by the mission of the Obama Foundation and the role the Center can play in empowering that mission. It is a joy, an honour, and a responsibility to create a place that reflects the optimism and integrity of the President and the First Lady.
“This has been a transformative presidency and we will work to make a Center that embodies and expands the Obamas' vision.”
The firm’s previous leisure projects include the Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago and the Barnes Foundation art museum in Philadelphia.
The Obama Foundation is currently considering two sites for the location of the Center – Jackson Park and Washington Park on the South Side. The cost of the project will be approximately US$500m (€450m, £376m). Work is set to begin next year, and completed by 2021.
The presidential library system began in 1939, when Franklin D. Roosevelt donated his presidential papers to the federal government to be preserved and made accessible to the public.
There are currently 13 presidential libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), beginning with the 31st President, Herbert Hoover.
US President Barack Obama has dedicated a new national monument to women’s equality
with the hope of creating a landmark that will stand for hundreds of years.
US President Barack Obama will promote the advancement of liveable cities next week
with a White House budget proposal raising money for green transportation projects.
Having recently chosen Chicago, Illinois, as the host location for Barack Obama’s
presidential library, The Barack Obama Foundation is now launching a competition to find
an architect for the US President’s legacy project.
The Bannatyne Group says it has officially bounced back from the pandemic, with both turnover
and profits restored to pre-2020 levels in 2023, according to its year-end results.
While British adults are the most active they’ve been in a decade, health
inequalities remain with the same groups missing out, according to Sport
England’s latest Active Lives Adults Report.
Kerzner International has signed deals to operate two new Siro recovery hotels in Mexico and
Saudi Arabia, following the launch of the inaugural Siro property in Dubai this February.
Nuffield Health’s fourth annual survey, the Healthier Nation Index, has found people moved
slightly more in 2023 than 2022, but almost 75 per cent are still not meeting WHO guidelines.
Beltrami Linen’s approach to the world of spa is underpinned by a strong emphasis on bespoke
design, where close collaboration with customers and their designers is always of the utmost
importance. [more...]
Discover how to prepare your spa or wellness facility for the influx of international guests
and meet global standards as tourism in Saudi Arabia surges. [more...]
Obamas choose New York architects to lead design of their presidential library and museum
POSTED 01 Jul 2016 . BY Kim Megson
The Obama Foundation was launched by the Obamas in 2014 to 'inspire the next generation of young leaders across the world' Credit: Susan Walsh/AP/PA Images
Barack and Michelle Obama have chosen the architectural team of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects and Partners (TWBTA) and Interactive Design Architects (IDEA) to design the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago.
When built, the centre will include a library holding the presidential archives, a museum focusing on the Obama presidency and space for initiatives that advance the foundation’s public mission to promote global progress.
TWBTA, based in New York, and IDEA, based in Chicago, will lead a multidisciplinary team that may include as many as 20 other firms engaged in various specialty areas. The Obama Foundation will manage the design and construction of the Center in collaboration with a project management team yet to be named.
“TWBTA stood out in their commitment to exploring the best ways of creating an innovative centre for action that inspires communities and individuals to take on our biggest challenges,” said the foundation’s chair, Martin Nesbitt. “IDEA bring local knowledge and a track record for delivering excellence to large, complex civic projects.”
Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, the husband-and-wife founding partners of TWBTA, said: "We believe that architecture is the coming together of art and use, and can bring a sense of grace to life. The greatest buildings are places which contribute to more than their particular task by elevating and improving the world.
“We are deeply moved by the mission of the Obama Foundation and the role the Center can play in empowering that mission. It is a joy, an honour, and a responsibility to create a place that reflects the optimism and integrity of the President and the First Lady.
“This has been a transformative presidency and we will work to make a Center that embodies and expands the Obamas' vision.”
The firm’s previous leisure projects include the Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago and the Barnes Foundation art museum in Philadelphia.
The Obama Foundation is currently considering two sites for the location of the Center – Jackson Park and Washington Park on the South Side. The cost of the project will be approximately US$500m (€450m, £376m). Work is set to begin next year, and completed by 2021.
The presidential library system began in 1939, when Franklin D. Roosevelt donated his presidential papers to the federal government to be preserved and made accessible to the public.
There are currently 13 presidential libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), beginning with the 31st President, Herbert Hoover.
US President Barack Obama has dedicated a new national monument to women’s equality
with the hope of creating a landmark that will stand for hundreds of years.
US President Barack Obama will promote the advancement of liveable cities next week
with a White House budget proposal raising money for green transportation projects.
Having recently chosen Chicago, Illinois, as the host location for Barack Obama’s
presidential library, The Barack Obama Foundation is now launching a competition to find
an architect for the US President’s legacy project.
The Bannatyne Group says it has officially bounced back from the pandemic, with both turnover
and profits restored to pre-2020 levels in 2023, according to its year-end results.
While British adults are the most active they’ve been in a decade, health
inequalities remain with the same groups missing out, according to Sport
England’s latest Active Lives Adults Report.
Kerzner International has signed deals to operate two new Siro recovery hotels in Mexico and
Saudi Arabia, following the launch of the inaugural Siro property in Dubai this February.
Nuffield Health’s fourth annual survey, the Healthier Nation Index, has found people moved
slightly more in 2023 than 2022, but almost 75 per cent are still not meeting WHO guidelines.
The US spa industry is continuing its upward trajectory, achieving an unprecedented milestone
with a record-breaking revenue of US$21.3 billion in 2023, surpassing the previous high of
US$20.1 billion in 2022.
Short-term incentives for exercise, such as using daily reminders, rewards or games, can lead
to sustained increases in activity according to new research.
Beltrami Linen’s approach to the world of spa is underpinned by a strong emphasis on bespoke
design, where close collaboration with customers and their designers is always of the utmost
importance. [more...]
Discover how to prepare your spa or wellness facility for the influx of international guests
and meet global standards as tourism in Saudi Arabia surges. [more...]