Sponsorship Opportunities
See why corporate sponsorship today is more compelling than ever before.
Arts attendees and patrons agree that corporate sponsorship of the arts makes them more receptive to that sponsor's messaging, according to a 2011 report. Sponsoring the National Building Museum’s exhibitions and education programs is an effective marketing and business development tool for reaching a target audience of professionals in the built environment, policy makers, students, families, and more.
The Museum’s exhibitions and design-based education programs provide students, families, and visitors the opportunity to better understand the built world around them and their role in its future. Our dynamic exhibitions encourage thoughtful consideration of timely themes such as the greening of our nation's schools or the varied and interconnected meanings of "house" and "home." Our award-winning educational programs for students not only teach design, urban planning, and engineering, but they also challenge participants to learn creativity, teamwork, and confidence—all skills that business leaders seek in a 21st century workforce.
Current sponsorship opportunities include the below highlights. For more information about a specific opportunity, or a broader overview of the Museum’s corporate social responsibility program, please contact sponsorship@nbm.org or 202.272.2448.
The Big Build
September 21, 2013
A one-of-a-kind, annual, family event, The Big Build fills a unique niche within the Washington, D.C. area, introducing boys and girls to a wide range of respected professions, while educating them about a key aspect of our everyday lives—the built environment. And, it’s great fun! Held this year on Saturday, September 21, 2013, this free festival celebrates building craftspeople and their skills—from heavy equipment operators who dig basements and nimble roofers to glass designers, stone carvers, and landscape architects who provide the finishing touches. Last year, we increased attendance by 50% to 4,500, and for 2013, expect to draw even more people through broader marketing and outreach efforts in partnership with our sponsors. Join us as we expand this unique festival to teach more children about the building trades.
Overdrive: L.A. Presents the Future, 1940-1990
October 20, 2013—March 10, 2014
We all have a vision of Los Angeles. The sprawling metropolis is home to some of the most iconic, innovative, and quintessentially “American” buildings of the twentieth century. Yet the creativity and experimentation that shaped L.A.’s emergence as an influential center of cutting-edge architecture are often overlooked. Overdrive: L.A. Constructs the Future, 1940-1990 will, for the first time, offer an in-depth view of the free-spirited, often experimental architecture of post-World War II Los Angeles, which strongly influenced design trends across the country. Original drawings, photographs, models, vintage film clips, and digital displays will reveal the complex and often underappreciated facets of L.A.’s built landscape, and will illustrate how the world’s first megacity became an internationally recognized destination with its own design vocabulary, canonized landmarks, and coveted lifestyle. Overdrive is organized by the Getty Research Institute and the J. Paul Getty Museum. The National Building Museum will serve as the only other venue for the exhibition, and Overdrive will form the centerpiece of the Museum’s fall programming.
Designing for Disaster
Opening spring 2014
Natural disasters can impact any of us, anywhere, at any time. During the past decade, the financial toll in the U.S. alone has exceeded $100 billion, and the loss of life and emotional impact is immeasurable. No region of the country is immune; 99 major disasters were declared in 45 U.S. states and territories in 2011. Designing for Disaster will frame disaster mitigation as an evolving science and highlight the tools and strategies that today’s engineers, designers, planners, and various business and community leaders are investigating and adopting to build safer, more disaster resilient communities both here and abroad. By showcasing innovative research, cutting-edge materials and technologies, and new thinking about how to work with natural systems and the environment, the exhibition will present a range of viable responses that are functional, pragmatic, and beautiful.
Teen Outreach Programs
Ongoing
The Museum’s award-winning teen outreach programs—CityVision, Design Apprenticeship Program, and Investigating Where We Live—are intense, focused opportunities for young people ages 11 to 18 to receive training on topics related to the building arts. By focusing on District neighborhoods, these programs give D.C. metropolitan area youth opportunities to address issues in urban design and planning relevant to their lives and communities. Our programs reach a diverse group of students from a range of socio-economic backgrounds and are offered entirely free of charge to participants. Many participants have gone on to study or pursue a career in architecture, design, engineering, and other related fields as a result of their experiences in the Museum’s outreach programs.
For more information on a specific opportunity, or a broader overview of the Museum’s corporate social responsibility program, please contact sponsorship@nbm.org or 202.272.2448.
The National Building Museum is a nonprofit organization certified 501(c)(3) by the Internal Revenue Service. Contributions are tax-deductible to the maximum allowable extent of the law. The Museum's tax identification number is 52-1050999. To obtain a copy of the organization's most recent audited financial statement or other financial information, please call 202.272.2448.
