The ongoing modernization of the National Air and Space Museum is featured in “A Monumental Museum Makeover” in Engineering News-Record (ENR).

Quinn Evans is leading the design team for the comprehensive renovation, on which we’ve been working for over 10 years. Principals Leora Mirvish, FAIA, LEED AP, and Colin MacKillop, AIA, LEED AP, were interviewed for ENR’s piece.

Colin provided insight into our team’s approach, which was informed by the Smithsonian Institution’s needs and goals for the renewed museum. Open 364 days a year and with over 350 million visitors since its opening in 1976, the building is a workhorse. Our renovation needed to not only bring it up to current standards but prepare it for its next generation of service.

This would be a generational project, one designed to last 100 years. The approach was, ‘Let’s get it right and make sure it’s comprehensive.’

COLIN MACKILLOP, AIA LEED AP, PRINCIPAL AT QUINN EVANS

Leora detailed the museum’s condition when we first began surveying the building in 2013. Its systems were at the end of their service life and were further strained by envelope deficiencies that caused moisture- and temperature-control issues—some of which had developed soon after the museum opened.

We designed a full envelope replacement and major systems upgrades, as well as a new shading system for the building’s atria. All-new finishes include terrazzo floors, which replace carpeting in all exhibit areas. A dynamic new vestibule inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s designs for flying machines will greet visitors entering from the National Mall.

The first phase, including approximately half the exhibits, opened in 2022. All building work is expected to be substantially complete this November, with most of the remaining exhibits ready to receive the public by July 2026—the museum’s 50th anniversary.

Read the full article here.