Taking its cues from the gabled rooflines and porches of the Historic Southside, the design folds an undulating mass-timber roof into a twelve-point nova star, a motif borrowed from the Juneteenth flag. Beneath the peaks, a publicly accessible courtyard anchors galleries set on a circular plan, whilst extensive glazing carries daylight deep into the timber interior.<\/p>\n
Viewed from above, the roof points form a twelve-point nova star around a publicly accessible courtyard, the motif drawn from the Juneteenth flag. (Image Credit: Plomp \/ BIG)<\/p>\n
For Alligood, whose career has centred on community-driven work, the building speaks to more than its civic role. \u2018Juneteenth is not only American history\u2014it is world history,\u2019 Alligood said.<\/p>\n
Built largely from exposed engineered timber, the building rises over two storeys, with the museum galleries set on the upper floor. Inside sit 10,000 square feet of exhibition space, a 250-seat theatre, a business incubator and a food hall for local vendors, reached through five street-level entrances and two covered portals onto the central court.<\/p>\n
Inside, exposed timber rafters carry the gabled roofline into a 250-seat theatre for talks, performances and community events. (Image Credit: BIG \/ KAI Enterprises)<\/p>\n
Having run a one-room Juneteenth museum on the same block for close to twenty years, Lee sees the new building as the next step from her walking campaign to Washington and the petition that made Juneteenth a federal holiday in 2021. \u2018It\u2019s mind-boggling, but I\u2019m glad to see it all come to pass,\u2019 Lee said.<\/p>\n
Set on a Historic Southside block severed by Interstate 35 in the 1960s, the museum rises in a district once celebrated as a centre of Black commerce. The start of construction follows the June opening of another US mass timber museum<\/a> and comes within months of the 100th birthday of Lee, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient who spent decades advocating for Juneteenth to become a federal holiday.<\/p>\n Jason Ross, publisher, is a 15-year professional in building and construction, connecting with more than 400 specifiers. A Gottstein Fellowship recipient, he is passionate about growing the market for wood-based information. Jason is Wood Central’s in-house emcee and is available for corporate host and MC services.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n