RadioActive:
HOMELAND MUSEUMS by Benoit Roussel
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click image to see full scale
image: Denis Roussel
NOT TO BE RELEASED BEFORE OCTOBER
1st, 2002
The Homeland Cultural Bureau is proud to announce the creation of fifty
Homeland Museums in the the capitals of each of the fifty States of America.
Depending on local scheduling the building of the Homeland Museums will
start between March 1st, 2003 and November 30th, 2003. The Homeland Museums
will be publicly inaugurated in every city on July 4th, 2004.
What is the Homeland Museum project ?
In these times where the American Cultural Heritage is threatened not
only worldwide but also in its very own territory, the Homeland Cultural
Bureau has engaged in a project of strongly preserving all of the aspects
of the American Culture and the American Way of Life. The Homeland Museums
aim to protect all cultural aspects of the more-than-bicentennial nation
and will act as a perennial reference centre for american values and traditions.
How will it work ?
In the next year the Homeland Cultural Bureau will collect significant
artworks and documentation from the museums and institutions in every
state. Only second-generation citizens and first-generation citizens who
can expose a proof of permanent residence in the United States for at
least twenty years will be allowed in the Museum. For other visitors,
an exam of american citizenship and values will be organized yearly in
every major city of the country. There will be no fee to participate in
this examination. Succeeding in the exam will allow a two-year, renewable
authorization to visit and participate in the activities of the Homeland
Museums on the whole territory of the United States.
The Architecture
The Homeland Museum building, in the shape of a five-branch star of a
diameter of 600 feet, has been conceived by a group of architects working
in close relationship with the Homeland Cultural Bureau. In the spirit
of preservation of American Culture and Identity, the building is
designed to resist conventional as well as biological and nuclear attacks.
The Homeland Museum
The star-shaped building of the Homeland Museum is divided into six main
sections :
1. The American Landscape Artworks, photographs, botanic samples, architecture
database of the landscape of America since its beginning in the fifteenth
century.
2. The Pioneers and The American Heroes From the colons to the Conquest
of the West, from the Secession War to the Gulf War and beyond, the endless
fight of America for Freedom.
3. Economics Artworks, books, theories explaining how America became the
greatest economical power in the world and how to do it again if necessary
!
4. Women and Men A review of american traditions through images, books,
clothing... the epitome of the american Men and Women and their behaviours,
from cooking to education, from agriculture to sexuality.
5. Religion, Philosophy and Science The beliefs, thoughts and knowledge
that led America to world leadership, from the Bible to the conquest of
the Moon.
6. The "Pentagon" The central section of the star, called "The
Pentagon" (referring to its shape), will be dedicated to visitors
information, public forum, and general linking to Homeland activities.