Rafael Viñoly Architects lofts monolithic metal volume for military museum in Texas

International architecture studio Rafael Viñoly Architects has lofted a solid aluminium mass on concrete pillars to represent the "weight of valor" for a museum dedicated to Medal of Honor recipients in Arlington, Texas, USA.

The 102,000-square-foot (12,100-square-metre) National Medal of Honor Museum (NMOHM) sits on a five-acre site adjacent to AT&T Stadium and Globe Life Park, the respective homes of sports teams the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers.

Rafael Viñoly Architects (RVA) wanted to represent the qualities of the Medal of Honor, the highest award given to US military personnel.

"This project is about impossibilities," RVA partner Bassam Komati told Dezeen. "The main concept was to make the museum a monument that symbolizes the experience of the Medal of Honor recipients."

RVA lifted a seemingly solid metal block – measuring 200 feet long by 200 feet wide by 35 feet deep (60 metres x 60 metres x 10 metres) – 40 feet (12 metres) in the air.

Cantilevering 50 feet (15 metres) in each cardinal direction, the block is clad in continuous, anodised aluminium that was naturally processed and unpainted.

Komati explained that the box is always part of the visitor's experience. The studio designed it to be seen as a monolith from a distance, as a heavyweight object overhead upon entry, and still visible inside the building.

"It's always present, always reminding you," he said.

"The block's ever-present form creates a journey to understanding the honorees' experiences."

The block is supported by five concrete-clad mega columns that represent the branches of the US military. Working to conceal integrated services, the columns have a conical shape to denote "the support of one by the group," Komati said.

Guests enter by descending a sloped walkway into the outdor sunken Rotunda of Honor that serves as a gathering space. A large, circular oculus draws sunlight down into the covered space. At night, light is projected up through the oculus to create a beacon for the museum.

The semi-circular ground level is ringed by enclosed spaces, including the Griffin Institute educational hub, the 240-seat Col Neel E Kearby Theater and the Patrick Brady Hall. Connected by the Lincoln Lobby and amphitheatre, each of the spaces has a floor-to-ceiling structural glass facade that opens views onto the man-made Mark Holtz Lake.

Inside, a gold-coloured ring lines the ceiling and displays the names of the 3,528 Medal of Honor recipients, inscribed and backlit to form a patterned memorial.

Two open-air, suspended staircases spiral up into the exhibition space with a light-to-dark transition as guests climb into the weight of the block. A glass elevator sits at the back of the semi-circle, off the lobby.

Upstairs, guests enter into a doughnut-shaped video display called the Medal of Honor Experience. The central core – which wraps the oculus – displays recipients while the outer ring shows a film called The Courage Within, created by Redglass Pictures.

Following the film, visitors enter into the flexible primary exhibition space designed by Gallagher and Associates – known for the World War II Museum in New Orleans – and traverse clockwise around the square floorplate. A timeline that wraps the film area and the displays were organised around themes.

The collection features 400 items on display and another 400 in storage, ranging from military memorabilia and personal photos and memories. The exhibition calls out Dr Mary Walker, the only female recipient, and Douglas Munro, the only recipient from the U.S. Coast Guard, as well as over 700 immigrant recipients.

"This is not a military museum," Rhue said. "It is a human museum."

The exhibition incorporates numerous audio and visual elements, allowing guests to hear battle recordings, participate in a virtual reality dust-off mission and even speak with recipients through extensive interview clips curated by artificial intelligence.

In addition to 34 Medals of Honor on display, the exhibition features a Huey Helicopter, which was acquired after the exterior of the building had been built. The team deconstructed the corner of the building to install the helicopter.

The museum opened to the public on March 25, National Medal of Honor Day.

Originally slated for Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, with a Moshe Safdie design, the museum site was moved to Arlington in 2019. Rafael Viñoly Architects was selected as chief architect in January 2020 after winning a design competition, with construction kicking off in March 2022.

Komati noted that Rafael Viñoly was instrumental in the museum's initial concepting before he died in 2023.

The studio recently unveiled designs for the last project the founder designed, a terraced residential building in Uruguay. In 2024, the studio completed an 88-storey skyscraper in downtown Manhattan.

The photography is by Halkin Mason.

Project credits:

Architect: Rafael Viñoly Architects
Exhibit designer: Gallagher & Associates
General contractor: Linbeck Group
Owner's representative: Irvine Team
Civil engineer: Graham Associates
Landscape architect: MPFP
Structural engineer: schlaich bergermann partner (sbp)
MEP engineer: ME Engineers, Inc.
Enclosure consultant: Curtainwall Design Consulting
Lighting designer: One Lux Studio
Theatre planning consultant: Schuler Shook
Acoustics consultant: Cerami
Building code and life safety consultant: Jensen Hughes
Food service consultant: Young Caruso
Graphic and wayfinding consultant: focusEGD
Vertical transportation consultant: EWCG
Wind and climate consultant: CPP Wind

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