SmithGroup Design of the Normandy American Cemetery Visitor Center to Express a Quiet Dignity

WASHINGTON, April 12 /PRNewswire/ -- SmithGroup, a leading architecture and engineering firm, says the design of the soon-to-open Normandy American Cemetery Visitor Center will express a quiet dignity -- a tribute of respect to the Cemetery.

The new, $30 million Visitor Center at the Normandy American Cemetery is nearing completion. It will be dedicated on the 63rd anniversary of D-Day, June 6, 2007, by the American Battle Monuments Commission.

The 30,000-square-foot visitor center is situated on a cliff overlooking Omaha Beach in Colleville-sur Mer, France, site of the historic D-Day landings. The Allied forces that stormed the beach, part of the largest amphibious assault ever staged, had a goal to liberate mainland Europe from Nazi occupation during World War II. The new center is intended to tell the story of those who participated in the landings that day and in subsequent operations.

Sited within the Normandy American Cemetery 100 meters east of the Memorial, the center will support and complement this hallowed ground where 9,387 Americans are buried.

While maintaining the solemnity of the cemetery and its surroundings, it will enhance the power of the cemetery experience, says David Greenbaum, FAIA, of SmithGroup, the project's team leader. "The design expresses a quiet dignity and does not 'steal the thunder' from the cemetery," notes Greenbaum.

Inside the elegant and simple, low-slung, stone, glass and concrete building, visitors will find the story of the brave individuals who fought and died there. The building tells this story symbolically through the various approaches the Allies utilized during Operation OVERLORD.

The experience commences in the lobby, where visitors will be immediately presented with a dramatic setting and expansive views of the beach. A reflecting pool will use water to link visitors with the English Channel in the distance.

Exploration of the building reveals exhibit spaces that have been crafted for orientation, contemplation, reflection, and transition. Using personal stories of participants and a mix of narrative text, photos, films, interactive displays and artifacts, the exhibits will portray the competence, courage and sacrifice of the Allied forces.

Proceeding through the center as it leads to the cemetery, visitors will reach a cube-shaped meditation chamber -- a place to ponder the sacrifices made. Within translucent glazed walls rising to double height to a transparent skylight, a twin cube "void garden" symbolizes the heroes lost and the grieving families they left behind. Visitors will exit north where they will face the English Channel. A paved plaza will join the existing trail that parallels the beach and leads west to the cemetery.

The integration of the landscape and the interpretive message was key to the project success. Led by SmithGroup, the collaborative team that accomplished this included Gallagher & Associates (exhibit design); Michael Vergason Landscape Architects (landscape architecture); Jacobs Engineering (civil, structural and MEP engineering); and John Lampros Architecte (associate architect.)

The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) (http://www.abmc.gov/), a federal agency established in 1923, maintains 24 commemorative cemeteries and 25 memorials, monuments and markers in 15 countries around the world. The Normandy American Cemetery is ABMC's most visited commemorative site, receiving approximately one million visitors each year.

SmithGroup (http://www.smithgroup.com/) is composed of client industry-focused practices serving the museum, university, science & technology, workplace and healthcare markets. Established in 1853, SmithGroup is the longest continually operating architecture and engineering firm in the U.S., and ranks as the 7th largest architecture and engineering firm in the country employing a staff of 800 throughout 10 U.S. offices.