What is the appropriate expression for an architecture that reflects the United States government in our time?  How can we capture, in the architecture, today’s zeitgeist of parity and inclusivity, the vast multi-cultural tapestry that defines America?  Surely the familiar antecedents of the United States Federal Style, fundamental as they are to the development of western architecture, cannot fully embody the breadth or diversity of the United States:  They are mostly exclusive to a Greco-Roman expression of imperialism.

Similarly, in looking specifically at President Obama’s two terms in office, it would be senseless to cloak his monuments in pseudo-African garb, or the ancient sepulchral design of Egypt.  The Obama Presidential Center is not a cenotaph or a place for appropriation.  It is an active monument to America’s first Black president, a living symbol of dreams and promises fulfilled.  Therefore, it must charge forward as much as it respects tradition.  And it must be uniquely American.

After much consideration, the ultimate expression adopted for Twin Embraces derives its aesthetic from the true and incontrovertible inputs of detailed environmental response, frugality of material use, and reasoned decision making.  It honors the multitude of internal functions that converge and coexist here harmoniously, overtly expressing each, and recognizing that all aspects of the Center contribute to its success and ultimate achievement.  In this regard, the individual elements are representative of democracy, American democracy, each providing a voice in a collective chorus of complicated and entangled engagement.  It is a landscape of human activity.

The hexagon was adopted due to its purity, its scalability, and its unique structural and environmental possibilities.  In addition, there is the ability to nest and tessellate the form in an egalitarian manner.  Calling to mind not only classical United States forms, but also Native American encampments and the vernacular of West African villages, the design is deliberately a conglomerate.  This, as opposed to a simplified, internalizing mass that dominates its subsidiary functions in service of a feigned singular voice – the architectural embodiment of a dictatorship.  The democratic approach underpinning the design of Twin Embraces naturally facilitates the desired Embraces of park and community.  The complex responds on its urban frontage with predictable rhythms that are reminiscent of Washington Park’s historic neighborhood patterns, while at the Park Embrace the form is more organic, with a focus on providing public access, supporting the park setting, sheltering specific functions, and responding overtly to natural inputs for the benefit of performance.

Nevertheless, despite its democratic focus, a central goal of the design is to celebrate the singular achievement of one man, President Barack Obama.  For this reason, the Beacon of Hope tower, primarily housing exhibitions of the Obama Museum, is set apart from the rest, elevated above, even its first floor lofted far above the ground.  With the backdrop of the complex and broader community assembled behind it, the tower rises above the tree canopy of Washington Park, as though Chicago has hoisted its favorite son high upon legendarily broad shoulders.