J. Max Bond, Jr., and the NMAAHC: An Interview with Robert Anderson of Davis Brody Bond

Photograph courtesy of Davis Brody Bond

ROWELL:

You are part of the leadership team of Davis Brody Bond, which has offices in New York, São Paulo, and Washington, DC. As the Director of the Washington office of the firm, you are able to witness each step the builders and other workers make as they go about trying to complete the physical structure of the NMAAHC, the museum building and the landscape, its environs. You are already part of that history. What does that mean to you? What does such an important national responsibility mean to you—that is, to share in the immediate responsibility of the construction of this important physical structure, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture?

ANDERSON:

I am one of many that have contributed to this historic project and it’s taken everyone’s efforts to accomplish what you’ve seen to date. Professionally I’ve been fortunate to have been immersed in cultures of creativity and collaboration which speaks to the team on the NMAAHC. Early in my career I lived and worked abroad for a decade. This experience showed me a different view of the world, its politics, religions, cultures, languages, and varying beliefs. Personally it’s very moving to work on projects of global significance. To be entrusted with designing a museum in America’s front lawn fills everyone with pride, yet I think the true credit goes to the people that lived the history along with its caretaker Dr. Bunch. We’ve simply translated his words and vision into physical space and material.

ROWELL:

Although the NMAAHC is in fact a museum, it is ultimately more than a repository or a site where items of various kinds are to be kept, exhibited, and memorialized; it is for Americans, and especially for African Americans, a spiritual locus which signals to the world what it means to be US American. And the architectural work you and so many others are performing here is part of the collective act of making visible a long neglected, denigrated, and marginalized component—a major component, let me add—of what it means to be American. This is a very significant defining moment in United States history. What can you tell me about J. Max Bond, Jr.’s approach to creating sites of memorialization that serve also as monuments—to a people, for instance, or to a particular historical moment— specifically in terms of his work on sites such as the NMAAHC and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum?

ANDERSON:

For Max, it was probably his work designing the Martin Luther King Jr. Center, in Atlanta, which set him on this path. At the time of its inception, the recent history of the Civil Rights Movement and Dr. King were still raw memories, and the building was controversial in some circles, which is hard to understand today when Dr. King is almost universally acknowledged as one of our greatest public figures. Max deliberately chose a non-monumental, almost humble approach to the center’s siting, materials, and scale. He created a place that was welcoming and not overwhelming in how it embraced the visitor. Max was always sensitive to those who visit and use his buildings, in particular striving to avoid grandeur and monumentality, especially in light of the character of those honored at the King Center.

At the 9/11 Museum, Max recognized the strong emotional resonance of the site and the powerful memories visitors bring themselves. The design acknowledges this by creating a gradual descent that slowly brings visitors to bedrock while allowing individual memory to emerge. Of course, by virtue of its location, the site of the 9/11 Museum is an artifact, and part of an exhibit. In contrast, the NMAAHC tells a larger story that evolved over centuries. Its message speaks to sins of the past while celebrating culture and achievement. What ties both museums together is their positive outlook for the future...