Recent updates to the Obama Presidential Center have drawn criticism from some local residents following the release of new renderings and details about the project’s design and construction plans.
The Obama Foundation unveiled revised renderings this week intended to show how the center’s exterior and surrounding space will look once completed. But the unusual design of former President Barack Obama’s new presidential center in Chicago is facing fresh criticism, this time due to complaints that a newly added inscription on the building is nearly illegible.
The text, which comes from a speech Obama gave in Selma, Alabama, in 2015 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the historic civil rights marches, has left many people squinting and scratching their heads because of its layout and the way it wraps around the structure.
“I’m outside the Obama Center museum tower right now. The new letters — an excerpt from Obama’s Selma speech — are tough read to me, giving off the lorem ipsum vibes,” Chicago Sun-Times architecture critic Lee Bay wrote on LinkedIn, a reference to the Latin placeholder text often used in graphic design templates.
“The words are cut off. The Ts, Ls, and Is are indistinguishable,” former investment banker and best-selling author John LeFevre noted on X, adding that the structure “Looks like a trash can.”
Temple University Professor Jacob Shell also said that the E’s are also “indistinguishable from F’s,” and that “multiple words get disjointed — not just on one plane but two.”
“Truly, one of the most headache-inducing reading experiences I’ve ever had,” Shell said after trying to read the script.
“They somehow managed to make the Obama presidential library even uglier,” conservative influencer Johnny Maga said bluntly. “My gosh.”
And of course, the bizarre design and nature of the building has spawned several memes online.
“We have been trying to reach you about your car warranty,” the side of the building reads in one meme with phony text.
“If you like your plan, keep your plan. If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor,” the inscription reads in another meme.
Residents cited issues such as the center’s size, architectural style, and potential effects on local traffic and infrastructure. Some said they hoped the design would better reflect the vibrant character of the surrounding South Shore area and offer more open space and amenities for the community.
The center, long a focus of local and national attention, has faced scrutiny at various stages of planning and development, including debates over public funding, land use and economic impact. It is finally slated to open in June after years of delays.
The foundation has maintained that the center will be a cultural and economic asset, bringing jobs, tourism and educational opportunities to the region. Officials said construction is ongoing and that further refinements to the project will continue as plans evolve.
The building’s stark appearance has often been likened to the “Death Star” or described as a “concrete tomb.” However, an official from the Obama Foundation clarified in December that the design is intended to symbolize unity, rather than evoke the ominous presence of Darth Vader, the New York Post reports.
“The shape of the building was actually meant to mimic four hands coming together to show the importance of our collective action,” Obama Foundation deputy director Kim Patterson told CBS Chicago.
The 225-foot tower features only a handful of windows, a design choice that Patterson pointed out was intentional.
“There are not a lot of windows on the building, but that’s intentional because sunlight is just not a friend to the artwork and the artifacts that are going inside of the building,” she said.
Valerie Jarrett, CEO of the Obama Foundation and a senior adviser during President Obama’s two terms, highlighted that he has played an active role in shaping the design of his library.
“I wish that people could be a fly on the wall to see how many times in the course of the day that I hear from President Obama about ideas for the center, tweaks, programming, what we can do for the design,” Jarrett said.