A design for the National Medal of Honor Museum has been unveiled. Rafael Viñoly Architects unveiled the structure of the building, which will be dedicated to the recipients of the US Armed Forces Medal of Honor.
The National Medal of Honor Museum will be dedicated to remembering the 3,500 recipients of the Medal of Honor, the highest award for valor in combat in the U.S. military. The new museum will stand next to the Cowboys football stadium and the Texas Rangers baseball stadium in Arlington.
The first rendering of the future museum was unveiled in a ceremony attended by Charlotte Jones, Chairman Board of Directors at the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation (NMOHMF), Joe Daniels the CEO and Vice President National Medal of Honor Museum (NMOHM), and Mayor Jeff Williams, President of the Arlington Tomorrow Foundation. They issued a joint press statement before unveiling the project design.
The building has been designed with a slab at the front and which is connected to spaces below with large expanses of glass overlooking a reflecting pool. A reflecting spiraling pathway connects the slab to the spaces below. The building will feature a 25,000-square-foot block that will host the main gallery for permanent, interactive, and temporary exhibitions. The block is raised on silts and is served by two large, spiraling staircases.
The design was selected after Rafael Viñoly, the founder of the architect company strained a lot while lifting a slab in the studio. This lifting brought memories of how armed forces struggle in service.
The museum will be covered in steel. According to the architect, the armed battle requires strength similar to steel that has gone through the fire. The building will feature an open amphitheater that will be used as an events space with an exhibition block located above it.
“As someone who wasn’t born in America, but chose it as my home more than 35 years ago, it is the privilege of a lifetime to have the opportunity to design and build America’s next national treasure in Arlington – the American Dream City,” said Viñoly.
