CHICAGO | Obama Presidential Library

[mh777]

That finish looks like concrete…

[Cress3803]

cladding does look a little odd, maybe when there's a closer look

[Busy Bee]

I think the grayness of the stone has been surprising to many considering the renderings depicted it being a warmer earthy brownish tone. I think it will look fantastic though once people see it completed.

[Via Chicago]

ill be honest its not what i was expecting. the grain is really busy and the flatness feels pretty cold and stand offish. im getting some bad kitchen countertop vibes

this rendering seems to suggest more of a textural chiseled stone look. almost more like sandstone



it needs some warmness and softness to offset the monolithic feel, but im not sure thats coming through

that said, its unfinished so still too early to say

[Klippenstein]

There's some texture on the SE corner. It looks pretty cool.


Photo by Doug Shaeffer

[twister244]

I feel like it will look better both in-person, with lighting at night, and when it's finished. At first, I had the same feelings, but then after looking at a couple photos more clearly, I have faith the finished product will look good.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Via Chicago

ill be honest its not what i was expecting. the grain is really busy and the flatness feels pretty cold and stand offish. im getting some bad kitchen countertop vibes

this rendering seems to suggest more of a textural chiseled stone look. almost more like sandstone

it needs some warmness and softness to offset the monolithic feel, but im not sure thats coming through

that said, its unfinished so still too early to say

Yeah, in the early renderings TWBTA seemed to show a very similar material palette to the Barnes Foundation in Philly. Unfortunately, Barnes is a private foundation that was happy to source a warm limestone from Europe and Israel. https://www.stoneworld.com/articles/...lphia-landmark

Obama Foundation had a domestic sourcing requirement. Also, as I understand it, Obama personally selected this particular New Hampshire granite.

[r18tdi]

Travertine would have been nice, similar to The Getty in LA. I'm reserving judgement until it's finished.

[BruceP]

Originally Posted by r18tdi

Travertine would have been nice, similar to The Getty in LA. I'm reserving judgement until it's finished.

Marble is a poor choice for cladding since it does not expand and contract equally causing it to warp. (Thick blocks such as used in the U.S. Supreme Court Bldg are OK.) Remember when the (now) AON building had to be entirely reclad some years ago at an enormous cost? Ditto for the base of Water Tower Place.

[Busy Bee]

Without a doubt the importance of harsh weather resistance was likely THE factor in the selection of the NH granite. They were probably warned that any sedimentary rock like sandstone would inevitably decay and require costly maintenance and/or future replacement. Also that would be a terrible metaphor to have a presidential legacy monument's entire facade needing replacement years later. Like previously mentioned, see Standard Oil/Aon.

[Via Chicago]

i dont have a problem with granite. quite the opposite. i think the issue is the high polish finish they went for. and the busy grain which means the panels all individually stand out as opposed to blend in. something like this would look way better....


https://www.cupastone.com/wp-content...esidence-2.jpg


https://i.postimg.cc/cL6CQ50B/Armada...ecture-4-1.jpg


https://www.cupastone.com/wp-content...casa-vms-2.jpg


https://www.cupastone.com/wp-content...t-breuer-2.jpg

[ardecila]

The Obama stone looks very similar to the Breuer/Whitney IMO and has similar veining. Of course that kind of finish has a very different effect on a dense urban corner site vs. an object building in a park...

Clearly TWBTA realized the smooth stone would be too imposing which is why they added those textured sections. I dunno if that will do the trick, it's hard to say when it's only halfway completed. I do think the smooth stone and the lacy screen wall will have a nice balance.

[cloudbod]

The stone is pretty great in person, in the sunlight! It has a nice sparkle.

[chris08876]

Credit: FC

[Klippenstein]

Looks like they installed windows with an interesting design on them on the North side of the building where you could see the stairwells in the renderings. It went up really fast. Now I'm really curious to see what other little tweaks they've made to the final design.





Photos by Doug Shaeffer

[BrickellBased]

There's also some beige color in the stone from this angle like the renders show. It will depend a lot on the lighting. The renders tended to show the building at sunset I believe. Most buildings don't look flattering at high noon.

Originally Posted by Klippenstein

There's some texture on the SE corner. It looks pretty cool.


Photo by Doug Shaeffer

[nomarandlee]

Originally Posted by Klippenstein

Photos by Doug Shaeffer

Great updates Klippenstein

...I can't recall what they are doing to the east Midway there? Or the parking lot south of it for that matter. Does anyone else remember?

[Klippenstein]

Originally Posted by nomarandlee

Great updates Klippenstein

...I can't recall what they are doing to the east Midway there? Or the parking lot south of it for that matter. Does anyone else remember?

They are installing a playground on the midway along with better drainage since that area constantly floods. Here's an older rendering that gives a lot of detail about the elements they were planning.

This is the latest rendering as far as I am aware:



It seems more toned down. The original plan probably would've cost a lot more. The Obama Foundation had allocated $4 million for it.

The parking lot roof has another playground, a vegetable garden with a community kitchen and a sledding hill/"great lawn" planned. There are a bunch of renderings of the campus on the Obama Foundation website. Interestingly enough, looks like they also finally just released their 2023 Annual Report.

It includes this new video with some sweeping renders of the whole site:
• Video Link

[Klippenstein]

A video was posted today about the window art that was installed last week.

We’re excited to announce that we’ve commissioned renowned Ethiopian-American artist Julie Mehretu to create “Uprising of the Sun,” an 83-foot-tall x 25 ft wide glass installation that will be featured in the exterior of the north side of the Museum Building of the Obama Presidential Center.

• Video Link

[sentinel]

^^Found some more information in a new Archpaper article, and images:

https://www.archpaper.com/2024/09/ju...ential-center/