National Museum of the American Indian
Architecture Fact Sheet

Situated in front of the U.S. Capitol, the new curvilinear and domed National Museum of the American Indian is a striking addition to the National Mall. The 250,000-square-foot structure is clad in Kasota limestone and soon will be surrounded by an Eastern lowland landscape amid numerous water features. Special features of the museum such as an east-facing entrance, a prism window and the nearly 100-foot high Potomac space devoted to contemporary Native performances are a direct result of extensive consultations with Native peoples.

• The construction and design teams for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian are well on their way to opening the centerpiece facility on the National Mall on Sept. 21, 2004.
  
• For more information on the construction progress, the public is encouraged to visit the National Museum of the American Indian mini-exhibition (located in the Smithsonian Castle Great Hall) or view the museum’s web cam at www.nmaicam.si.edu.

• The National Museum of the American Indian building is located on a 4.25-acre site east of the National Air and Space Museum and just south of the U.S. Capitol.
  
• Total construction cost of the Mall Museum is $199 million, with an additional $20 million for exhibitions, public programs and opening events.
  
  
  
  
• The museum has an exterior cladding of Kasota dolomitic limestone from Minnesota. The pieces of Kasota stone vary in size and surface treatment giving the building the appearance of a stratified stone mass that has been carved by wind and water. Additional building materials include American-mist granite, bronze, copper, maple, adzed cedar, adzed alder and imperial plaster.
  
• Delicate crystal prisms, installed facing true south, will catch the sun’s rays and reflect a spectacular light spectrum onto the interior of the Potomac. This light “show” changes every day, and will be at its height from 11 a.m.–2 p.m. The color spectrum will animate the space and serve as one of the most visible design elements relating to the sun and light.
  
• Once in its final stage, the museum will incorporate state-of-the-art technology by wiring the building with over 400 multiple communications systems outlets run from a central Network communication center.
  
• Approximately 20-30 large rocks and boulders, known as grandfather rocks, will be brought to the site and incorporated in the landscape.

• CLARK/TMR is composed of the Clark Construction Company of Bethesda, Md., and Table Mountain Rancheria Enterprises Inc., a construction company that is a subsidiary of the Table Mountain Rancheria of Friant, Ca. Table Mountain Rancheria is a federally-recognized American Indian tribe.
  
• Project Designers: Douglas Cardinal (Blackfoot) Ltd. and GBQC, Johnpaul Jones (Cherokee/Choctaw), Ramona Sakiestewa (Hopi), and Donna House (Navajo/Oneida)
  
• Project Architects: Jones & Jones, SmithGroup in association with Lou Weller (Caddo) and the Native American Design Collaborative, Polshek Partnership Architects

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SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION   PO Box 23473  Washington   DC 20026-3473
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