Eero Saarinen's Gateway Arch Ushers in Fourth of July

Photo by Robert Cohen.

The evening of Tuesday, July 3, 2018 marked the reopening of the St. Louis Gateway Arch Museum and Visitor Center after a large, $380 million renovation. The renovation focused on the Arch grounds and a new museum that commemorates the country's massive westward expansion. The Gateway Arch, conceived by Eero Saarinen in 1947, is a modern marvel that defies the laws of gravity. Its awe and grandeur have become points of pride for the local community. During the opening ceremony, Cardinals Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith, commented, "This icon represents us and it defines us."

Photo by Robert Cohen.

The new museum and visitor center features a 46,000 square foot multilevel addition that sits beneath the Gateway Arch. Mimicking the elegant curves of the Arch, the upper platform of the new building offers sprawling views of the city of St. Louis with the Old Courthouse front and center. As visitors enter the museum, they are greeted by a series of curves that have been repeated on multiple scales - from the buildings structural frame, to the shape of the wading area just outside the main doors. The museum's curvilinear design not only honors the Gateway Arch's elegant shape, but also pays tribute to the monument's master architect: Eero Saarinen.

Saarinen's subtle and graceful curves, as seen on his Tulip Collection for Knoll, are found in every corner of the new renovation, further emphasizing the Arch's shape as a symbol of this country's westward expansion. One floor down, the new museum exhibits the Gateway Arch's history, featuring key figures, original drawings and concepts and a profile on Eero Saarinen himself. The museum draws comparisons between the design for the Arch and Saarinen's famous Tulip Chair, which is on display under a scaled down model of the Gateway Arch.

The new Gateway Arch Museum and Visitor Center opened just in time for this nations' birthday, gathering hundreds of people to behold what we are capable of and to admire how far this nation has come.