Look Here reveals unexpected reflections of the National Building Museum’s Center Court in Washington, DC. Visitors to the exhibit discover viewports that create individual moments of contemplation among clusters of reflective fractals that expose new facets of the surrounding architecture.
Rethinking The Future Awards 2024
Third Award | Exhibition Design (Built)
Project Name: Look Here
Category: Exhibition
Studio Name: Reddymade
Design Team: Suchi Reddy, Suha Samara, Hitarth Nandi, Tim Liu, Shweta Krishnan
Area: 5,160 sf
Year: 2023
Location: National Building Museum, Washington, D.C.
Consultants:
National Building Museum Project Director: Cathy Crane Frankel
National Building Museum Master Carpenter: Chris Maclay
National Building Museum Technician: Marcus Collins
Fabricator and collaborative partner: Jancik Arts International
Fabricator: Faux Real Design and Fabrication
Engineers: DOTec Engineering
Seating: Fatboy USA
Photography Credits: Chris Coe / Timothy Schenck
Look Here invites visitors to see themselves in new environments that can expand their vision. The installation of fractals creates a walk-in architectural kaleidoscopic experience.
As visitors make their way along the ramp, they will also encounter iconic images of activist gatherings such as the 1963 March on Washington. The photos underscore the idea that the city was designed to not only house the seat of government but to be a physical representation of democratic ideals and beliefs. It furthers our philosophy that buildings and landscapes impact how we feel and, in turn, shape our society. As visitors come across these images in Look Here, they can see themselves in the reflective surfaces and join these moments in our collective history.
At the peak of the ramp, visitors emerge into a round platform where they can recline on padded seating below a series of kaleidoscopic elements.
These 8-foot-long kaleidoscopes reflect the striking architectural elements of the building including its eight massive Corinthian columns. At the center of the platform, an interactive volume will reveal a kaleidoscopic experience to children and adults alike.
Look Here engages with the immense scale of the atrium, using perspective as a way to understand life as well as a mechanism to study architecture. Using the movement of the body through space to amplify experience, visitor will see shifting forms, both with the naked eye and their camera lenses.
