The Obama Presidential Center: A study in community values

When I was offered the opportunity to preview the new Barack Obama Presidential Center, I jumped at it. I knew the nature of some parts of the complex — a basketball court, a new library branch, a raised-bed, food-producing garden, artifacts from the Obamas’ eight years in the White House — but I wasn’t prepared for the almost visceral reactions the Center evoked in me.

I have been to several presidential libraries — Dwight Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, Harry Truman — and even to Winston Churchill’s War Rooms in London. All of them were wonderful windows into the past and chock full of memorabilia, scenic reproductions, and commentary, but none came close to eliciting the kinds of feelings, memories, and emotions that flooded my heart the way the Obama Center did.

The Nelson Mandela Sky Room provides stunning views of Chicago’s South and West Sides where First Lady Michelle Obama grew up and where President Barack Obama began his political career. Entrance to the Sky Room is enhanced with multiple art installations, and it is free, open to the public, and available for weddings and special events. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
The Eleanor Roosevelt Fruit and Vegetable Garden sits atop the Barack Obama branch of the Chicago Public Library system. The plants were just sprouting when we visited. Produce like the red romaine lettuce, scallions, and Swiss chard seen here will be used in food served in the Obama Center’s two cafes. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
The Michelle Obama dress exhibit at the Obama Presidential Center features outfits the First Lady wore at State dinners, on election night, and at other high-profile events. The dresses are behind glass, but the exhibit also provides fabric swatches for visitors to touch. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
Visitors to the Obama Presidential Center take a respite from touring in the Mahalia Jackson Café, one of two in the Center. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
The Chicago Public Libraries opened a new branch on the campus of the Obama Presidential center across from the Center’s tower. This is the Reading Room. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
A statue depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as they waved to spectators along Pennsylvania Avenue after Obama’s first inauguration has become a popular site for photos even before the Center’s official opening. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
A miniature depiction of the 2016 Obama Passover Seder at the White House is just one of several miniaturized scenes commemorating special White House events that occurred during President Barack Obama’s two terms. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
A huge number of campaign buttons from various states, groups and supporters were used during President Barack Obama’s campaigns and painstakingly collected for this display. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
Many of the interactive displays throughout the Obama Presidential Center are based on President Barack Obama’s vision of America and the world through the years. This one, on his view of war, is from 2002 when he was an Illinois state senator. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
The Center will open to the public on June 19, but finishing touches are still being added to some parts of the campus, such as the 60,000-square-foot building that includes Home Court, an NBA regulation basketball court. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)

Maybe it’s because I experienced much of the showcased events firsthand, or maybe it’s because of the contrasts between America then and America now, but surely the same exhibits and community spirit that touched me will embrace every visitor who sets foot there.

Remarkably the $850 million campus and all its attractions were constructed without using a penny of taxpayer money and the complex uses zero fossil fuel for its energy needs.

When it opens to the public June 19, admission to the four levels of the Obama Presidential Center Museum will be $30 for adults aged 12 and above, $15 for children 3-11 who are Illinois residents, and $23 for children 3-11 who are not. Children under 2 are free. Special pricing for groups, veterans, educators and others also are offered. Some exhibits such as the Sky Room, outdoor gardens, public library and lobby are free. Go to Obama.org for details.

Tickets to the museum are timed tickets, and guests are expected to enter within 10 minutes of their scheduled times.

The Obama Presidential Center rises 225 feet above the complex’s 19.2-acre campus in Jackson Park. The lettering displays a quote from Obama’s 2015 speech commemorating the Selma to Montgomery marches in Alabama. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
Every exhibit in the museum section of the Center is multi-media and fully handicap accessible. Every video has an inset featuring a sign language interpretation of for the hearing impaired. Other exhibits offer Braille stations. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
A replica of President Barack Obama’s Oval Office in the West Wing of the White House is one of the Center’s most popular attractions so far. Docents are on hand at the display to take photos of visitors like Dawn Edwards of South Holland, who took the opportunity to try out the Resolute Desk. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
The three-story-tall “City of Big Shoulders” textured map of Chicago’s neighborhoods was created by artist Mark Bradford. It hangs on the west wall of the “Our Story Atrium” at the Obama Presidential Center. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
“This Land, Shared Sky, 2026” is the result of a collaboration by artists Nick Cave and Marie Watt. It is made of pony beads, shoelaces, nylon net, steel, jingles, satin ribbon, and net. (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)
“This Land, Shared Sky, 2026.” (Karen Torme Olson/H-F Chronicle)