Check out early photos of the ‘Lawn’ exhibit at the National Building Museum, opening July 4

Visitors to the National Building Museum will be able to see the Great Hall’s grand columns from a new angle starting tomorrow: from the perch of a scaffolding tower erected as part of “Lawn,” the museum’s latest “Summer Block Party” exhibit. A sloping, grassy patch has also been unfurled across the floor of the room, giving visitors a reprieve from the summer heat.

The museum is partnering with New York-based design firm Rockwell Group on the exhibit. Hammocks have been suspended from the 100-foot ceiling and are equipped with speakers programed to play audio stories related by more than a dozen celebrities and cultural figures.

Here are a few samples of the recorded stories told by notable people featured in the exhibit:

Venus Williams, tennis champion: “I was playing on the lawns of Wimbledon. This tournament was very special to me because not only was it my first Grand Slam title, but I was playing against an amazing player of the highest caliber, a top-ranked player named Lindsay Davenport.”

David Rockwell, founder of Rockwell Group: “As a kid growing up in New Jersey on the Jersey Shore, we actually had a very large lawn that blended into the street, and it was a kind of magical space for me and my brothers to constantly transform.”

Bette Midler, award-winning actress: “A patch of green, a lawn, in the midst of an urban environment is one of the most enchanting things on which you can lay your eyes.”

The exhibit will run through September 2. General admission tickets for adults are $16 each, $13 for youth. Other programing for the installation includes yoga, movie nights, and tours.

National Building Museum

National Building Museum

National Building Museum