Snarkitecture's indoor 'white beach' draws crowds to National Building Museum
by Alice Davis | 26 Aug 2015
More than 100,000 visitors have visited an unusual seaside-inspired installation at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, causing online ticket sales to be ceased to ensure current ticket holders can be accommodated.
The temporary exhibit, entitled BEACH, has been installed in the museum’s famous Great Hall and is the work of architecture practice Snarkitecture.
The Brooklyn-based firm’s 10,000sq ft (929sq m) interactive architectural exhibit – made from a mishmash of construction materials and an ocean of 750,000 recyclable plastic balls – follows in the footsteps of a life-sized maze designed by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, which was installed in the museum’s Great Hall last summer.
Visitors have been forming long queues to enjoy the BEACH, where adults and children alike are welcome to 'swim' and play in white ball pools and relax on the deckchairs that complete the installation. The ocean of plastic balls gets deeper as visitors move further out, to a maximum depth of 3.5ft (1m).
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"A lot of our work invites play and invites interaction and accessibility to a really wide audience, including children," Snarkitecture co-founder Alex Mustonen told CBS News.
BEACH is part of the National Building Museum’s annual Summer Block Party, a programme of events for all ages, including music events and late night opening.
Now that online ticketing is closed, admission is on a first-come, first-served basis.
Visitors can 'swim' at the interactive exhibit Credit: Noah Kalina
Relax in the deckchairs at the BEACH Credit: Noah Kalina
Visitors enjoy the 50-foot shoreline Credit: Noah Kalina
Alex Mustonen and Daniel Arsham of Snarkitecture Credit: Noah Kalina
09 Jun 2015
Snarkitecture installation recreates beach experience at Washington museum
11 Jul 2014
Lost and Found; BIG unveils maze at The National Building Museum, US
More than 100,000 visitors have visited an unusual seaside-inspired installation at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, causing online ticket sales to be ceased to ensure current ticket holders can be accommodated. The temporary exhibit, entitled BEACH, has been installed in the museum’s famous Great Hall and is the work of architecture practice Snarkitecture. The Brooklyn-based firm’s 10,000sq ft (929sq m) interactive architectural exhibit – made from a mishmash
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