North Carolina Museum of Art Phil Freelon Exhibition, NCMA Container/Contained Show, US Architect News

North Carolina Museum of Art Phil Freelon Exhibition, NC

February 22, 2022

North Carolina Museum of Art to Host Exhibition on Architect Phil Freelon

opens February 26

The Freelon Group. Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American History and Culture, Charlotte, NC, 2009:

photo © Mark Herboth Photography. Courtesy of Perkins & Will

Exhibition highlights the career of the storied NC architect who designed the National Museum of African American History and Culture in DC

North Carolina Museum of Art Phil Freelon Exhibition News

Raleigh, N.C.–The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) will host Container/Contained: Phil Freelon Design Strategies for Telling African American Stories February 26 through May 15, 2022. The exhibition celebrates the accomplished North Carolina architect Philip G. Freelon (1953–2019) and his remarkable career of over four decades designing public buildings with his firm, The Freelon Group, and later as design director of Perkins&Will North Carolina.

North Carolina architect Philip G. Freelon:

photo © Noah Willman. Courtesy of Perkins & Will

“We’re honored to help tell the story of Phil Freelon and his incredible accomplishments. The symbolism and metaphors in the buildings he designed celebrate Black communities and histories in a lasting way,” said Museum Director Valerie Hillings. “Freelon served on the North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation Board from 2008 to 2012, so we are especially pleased to present this exhibition focused on his groundbreaking career.”

The Freelon Group. National Center for Civil and Human Rights, Atlanta, GA, 2014:

photo © Mark Herboth Photography. Courtesy of Perkins & Will

This exhibition, organized by a team of faculty and students led by Dr. Emily Makas from the School of Architecture at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, debuted at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts and Culture in Charlotte, NC. It examines Freelon’s work, which includes museums, libraries, cultural centers, and public parks, with a focus on projects that embrace Black communities and identities. Freelon often noted that architecture should be more than a container—it should help tell the story of and be integral to the content of public institutions. To explore the relationship between the container and the contained in Freelon’s architecture, this exhibition analyzes connections among the forms, materials, and meanings of his projects and the histories and cultures they celebrate.

Freelon / Bond / Adyaje. Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Washington, DC, 2016:

photo © Alan Karchmer/NMAAHC. Courtesy of Perkins & Will

Freelon’s notable designs include the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC; the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta; the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco; the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts and Culture in Charlotte; the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum in Jackson; and the forthcoming Freedom Park in Raleigh. Freelon and his team drew on histories of neighborhoods, connections to African American communities, and African pasts to create designs rooted firmly in place and time.

Perkins & Will. Emancipation Park, Houston, TX, 2017:

photo © Mark Herboth Photography. Courtesy of Perkins & Will

Activism and celebration of heritage are subtly present in Freelon’s work. He was a master of formal symbolism and design metaphors that are thoughtful and thought-provoking and reference culture and history. Freelon’s work, for example, examines the multiple functions and meanings of skin—as both a protective covering and a visual form of identification. In his designs for African American communities and institutions, he expanded the idea of skin with complex building exteriors that explore the use of color, pattern, and material.

The exhibition is free to visit; no tickets required.

The Freelon Group. Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco, CA, 2005:

photo © Todd Hido. Courtesy of Perkins & Will

Container/Contained: Phil Freelon Design Strategies for Telling African American Stories Exhibition

Container/Contained: Phil Freelon Design Strategies for Telling African American Stories was researched, curated, and designed by a team of faculty and students led by Dr. Emily Makas from the School of Architecture at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. This work was made possible by support from UNC Charlotte’s School of Architecture, College of Arts and Architecture, Chancellor’s Diversity Grant Program, and Office of Undergraduate Research, as well as from Perkins&Will.

Perkins & Will. Design for Motown Museum, Detroit, MI:

photo © Perkins & Will

In Raleigh additional support for this exhibition is made possible, in part, by the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources; the North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc.; and the William R. Kenan Jr. Endowment for Educational Exhibitions. Research for this exhibition was made possible by Ann and Jim Goodnight/The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fund for Curatorial and Conservation Research and Travel.

Perkins & Will. Design for Freedom Park, Raleigh, NC:

photo © Perkins & Will

About the North Carolina Museum of Art

The NCMA’s collection spans more than 5,000 years, from antiquity to the present, making the institution one of the premier art museums in the South. The Museum’s collection provides educational, aesthetic, intellectual, and cultural experiences for the citizens of North Carolina and beyond. The 164-acre Museum Park showcases the connection between art and nature through site-specific works of environmental art. The Museum offers changing special exhibitions, classes, lectures, family activities, films, and concerts.

The Museum is located at 2110 Blue Ridge Road in Raleigh and is home to the People’s Collection. It is the art museum of the State of North Carolina, under the auspices of Governor Roy Cooper; an agency of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, guided by the direction of Secretary D. Reid Wilson; and led by Director Valerie Hillings.

Address:
2110 Blue Ridge Road, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA

North Carolina Museum of Art Phil Freelon Exhibition images / information from NCMA

Previously on e-architect:

Jan 14, 2011

New North Carolina Museum of Art Building – NCMA

North Carolina Museum of Art
Design: Thomas Phifer and Partners

North Carolina Museum of Art Building

Location: North Carolina Museum of Art, NC, USA

American Museum Buildings

American Museum Buildings – selection East Coast below:

Glenstone Museum Pavilions, Potomac, Maryland
Design: Thomas Phifer of Thomas Phifer and Partners

photo: Iwan Baan ; Courtesy: Glenstone Museum
Glenstone Museum Pavilions

Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, Miami, Florida – Shortlisted at World Architecture Festival Awards 2018
Design: Grimshaw

photo courtesy of architects
Miami Museum of Science Building

Newseum, Washington D.C.

Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C.

Taubman Museum of Art, Virginia

North Carolina Architecture

North Carolina Architectural Designs

Ann and Jim Goodnight Museum Park, North Carolina Museum of Art, Blue Ridge Road, Raleigh
Design: Civitas, Inc. Architects

photograph : Art Howard, courtesy of the North Carolina Museum of Art and Civitas, Inc.
Ann and Jim Goodnight Museum Park, North Carolina

Walnut Cove Residence, Arden
Design: Samsel Architects

photo : Todd Crawford
New Residence in Arden

Buildings / photos for the North Carolina Museum of Art Phil Freelon Exhibition – NCMA page welcome.

Website: North Carolina Museum of Art