ASCE NCS January 2018 Section Meeting

Opened in 1881, the Arts and Industries Building is the second-oldest of the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall. You may have observed the Arts and Industies Building under renovation over the last few years. Join us for a unique program that will examine the history of this iconic building and revitalization recent efforts.

Originally known as the National Museum, it was constructed to house many of the displays donated to the Smithsonian after the Centennial Exposition of 1876 in Philadelphia. After an architectural competition, the Board of Regents selected the architectural firm of Adolf Cluss and Paul Schulze to design the new building. Civil Engineer Montgomery C Meigs conducted a study of public museums in Europe and supervised the structural system design and construction.

The US National Museum Building was renamed the Arts and Industries Building in 1910. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1971. In 2006, the Arts and Industries Building was named as one of America's Most Endangered Places by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the building was closed due to its deteriorating condition. In 2009, it received funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for a first phase of revitalization.

After being closed for over 12 years, the Arts and Industries Building reopened for special events in the fall of 2015 and has hosted several activities, including the 2016 Smithsonian Folklife Festival.

Our speaker will be Architect Christopher Lethbridge who has managed the AIB Revitalization for the Smithsonian Institution. He will give us an overview of the project with insights into this historic structure. He is an Architect/Program Manager in the Office of Planning, Design & Construction and has been with the Office of Facilities Engineering and Operations for nearly fifteen years. His primary responsibility is the oversight of the Capital Program for the South Mall Campus: the Smithsonian Castle, the Freer Gallery of Art, the Sackler Gallery, the National Museum of African Art, the Ripley Center, and the Arts and Industries Building. He is leading planning for the revitalization of the Castle; has managed the AIB Revitalization, the first phase of which, renovating the building shell, has been completed; and is Program Manager for the South Mall Campus Master Plan. Before coming to the Smithsonian, he practiced architecture in Washington for nearly ten years as the principal of his own firm and was a project manager at American University. A native Washingtonian, he received a BA from Yale in 1975, having majored in architecture, and studied at the School of Architecture of the University of Virginia.