Jewish Museum 'almost disappears' on 'drab' Mall: report
Does the National Jewish Musem fit on Philadelphia's 'drab' Independence Mall?
The private National Museum of American Jewish History, built on "drab" Independence Mall with more than $100 million in pledges from real estate moguls and other businesspeople led by retired Goldman Sachs partner George M. Ross, "is a welcome contrast to the underwhelming parade of institutions on the mall dedicated to America's independence and Constitution," writes James Russell for Bloomberg here.
Architect James Stewart "Polshek's design is so restrained it almost disappears... Though beautiful, the building's elements seem engaged in a private conversation with one another, when the museum needs to offer a vigorous public invitation...
"The displays are text-heavy and jammed into a maze of stage sets. The success of Jews and of America often seems indistinguishable from rags-to-riches immigrant achievement to family life in postwar suburbia. That's the point, of course..."