Sky City Cultural Center & Haakú Museum
FACTS
Pueblo of Acoma • Acoma, NM CLIENT: Acoma Business Enterprises, Pueblo of Acoma, NM SCOPE : Full Architectural Services AWARDS: Santa Fe AIA Citation Award, Commercial Project over $2.0 Million, 2007 Special Jury Prize, Southwest Contractor, Best of New Mexico 2006 COMPLETION DATE: 2006 SIZE: 40,000 sq.ft. |
Known as “Sky City”, the Pueblo of Acoma has been a cultural tourism destination for nearly a century. Concealed in a pristine valley studded with sandstone monoliths, a 367 foot high mesa provides the setting for an amazing community which has been the spiritual and cultural homeland of the Acoma people. In 1629, construction began on the massive San Esteban del Rey Mission, now a centerpiece of the Sky City.
The history of Acoma people and the Pueblo dates back to as early as 1100 A.D. and is the oldest continuously-inhabited community in North America. The Pueblo of Acoma is the first Native American site to be named a Historic Site by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Monuments. The Pueblo’s San Esteban del Rey Mission has been designated as a Save America’s Treasures site and one of 100 endangered sites by the World Monuments Fund; the mission is listed on the National Register of Historic Monuments.
The Sky City Cultural Center and Haak’u Museum, rich in cultural architecture, serves as the reception center and museum for visitors to the Pueblo of Acoma, as well as a research and community use facility for tribal members. The primary 40,000 square foot Cultural Center is a two story structure with a basement and central courtyard/plaza area. The Cultural Center was designed to represent and recreate the ancestral architectural styles of the Acoma people – which include natural stacked stone and natural mud plastered adobe – while showcasing Acoma Pueblo architecture both past and present. This world class facility is dedicated to the preservation of Acoma history, traditional pottery and other art forms, the repatriation of objects of cultural patrimony and the development of both educational and interpretive programs.
The history of Acoma people and the Pueblo dates back to as early as 1100 A.D. and is the oldest continuously-inhabited community in North America. The Pueblo of Acoma is the first Native American site to be named a Historic Site by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Monuments. The Pueblo’s San Esteban del Rey Mission has been designated as a Save America’s Treasures site and one of 100 endangered sites by the World Monuments Fund; the mission is listed on the National Register of Historic Monuments.
The Sky City Cultural Center and Haak’u Museum, rich in cultural architecture, serves as the reception center and museum for visitors to the Pueblo of Acoma, as well as a research and community use facility for tribal members. The primary 40,000 square foot Cultural Center is a two story structure with a basement and central courtyard/plaza area. The Cultural Center was designed to represent and recreate the ancestral architectural styles of the Acoma people – which include natural stacked stone and natural mud plastered adobe – while showcasing Acoma Pueblo architecture both past and present. This world class facility is dedicated to the preservation of Acoma history, traditional pottery and other art forms, the repatriation of objects of cultural patrimony and the development of both educational and interpretive programs.