New Art Museum Rises from the Earth in Raleigh

It isn't much to look at right now. It is just a huge hole in the ground where the great lawn sat. It was a lawn with years of fond memories for those who would flock to it to watch the Fourth of July fireworks at the nearby fairgrounds.

Future generations will have to find a new spot from which to enjoy the spectacle. Massive earth moving machines have torn the earth asunder as they clawed through the tough red clay to create a huge hole. No dog or pack of dogs could have more completely destroyed the green lawn sprinkled with small trees than the grizzly looking earth movers.

Though not the largest machines in the area, they have shown themselves to be the most persistent. Each machine came with its own crew of tiny humans to keep it nourished as it spent its days cutting, pulling and piling earth. Each day it started anew. It didn't have any memory of the splendid fire works or the Saturday picnic that took place on the green parts of the land.

After it had done its deed, there were no green parts for anyone to remember.

The Raleigh Chronicle claims to have the straight skinny on this project. According to the Chronicle, the hole was originally going to be right beside the existing museum. One of the workers at the site said that the soil wasn't just right so they had to move the expansion building to a slightly less desirable position.

The $138 million dollar expansion was moved to the traffic circle and the area around it. The Chronicle had nothing to say about the displacement of the Fourth of July sky watchers. Fireworks may not be considered as art.

A New York firm, Thomas Phifer and Partners, is credited with the architecture of the new building. They have produced what appears to be a phenomenal design, which they believe can open its 65,000 foot exhibit space to visitors in 2009. Total space is indicated to be around 127,000 feet, which should include room for another cafeteria, a gift shop and administrative offices.

Not to be left in the dust by the architects, the museum staff has rounded up some of the most precious artifacts in the world to open for display in 2009. Some of these may already be on display. Someone at the museum got their hands on some of the works of Auguste Rodin. You know, the guy who gave us the Thinker.

I've seen the Rodin display at the Chicago Museum of Art and it is captivating.

The new museum is, for the present, just a hole in the ground where folks used to watch the Fourth of July fireworks and maybe have a picnic while doing so.