The Smithsonian Institution recently announced that Freelon Adjaye Bond/SmithGroup is the architectural team chosen to design the National Museum of African American History and Culture to be located on the National Mall near the Washington Monument. Six architectural firms entered the design competition in January. For renditions of all of the designs submitted for the competition, click here.

The museum will be constructed on a five-acre plot of land on Constitution Avenue, N.W. between the Washington Monument and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The building design will take up to three years, with construction to begin in 2012. Set to open in 2015, the museum’s total cost is estimated to be $500 million, including design.