A view of the playground area is seen from the Nelson Mandela Skyroom atop the museum tower at the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP)
Chicago, United States: It's been nicknamed the "Obamalisk" and compared to a Star Wars spaceship and the Eye of Sauron from "The Lord of the Rings".
Barack Obama's $850-million-dollar presidential center in Chicago has caused a stir even before the Democratic former president officially opens it on June 18.
Obama's is the latest, and perhaps most audacious, example of the peculiarly American genre of monuments that US leaders have erected to themselves after leaving office.
A statue depicting former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama during their 2009 inauguration parade is seen outside the entrance of the Museum Tower at the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP)
Causing the most controversy is its centerpiece - the near-windowless, 225-foot (69-meter) granite obelisk that houses the museum devoted to the first Black US president.
The monument, Obama Presidential Center reflects the core messages of his 2009-2017 presidency.
"It's a permanent home for hope," said Valerie Jarrett, CEO of the Obama Foundation and a former top White House aide during his presidency.
The monolithic museum is the anchor for a bigger 19.6-acre site in Chicago's South Side, which has long been home to Barack and Michelle Obama.
People tour the Obama Presidential Center during a media preview day in Chicago, Illinois. Photo by Scott Olson /AFP)
It includes a giant basketball gym dubbed the "Home Court" as a tribute to Obama's love of shooting hoops.
There is also a sprawling playground and a public library. But unlike the other 15 official US presidential libraries, it will store archives digitally instead of having physical copies.
'Obama burger'
Locals complained when it was announced in 2018 that the center would be built on a piece of green space, but the Obama Foundation says it is meant to be at the heart of the community.
Obama was heavily involved in the design - almost too heavily at times, Jarrett said.
"He's a bit of a frustrated architect, and so he had a lot to say about the way the building was designed," she said.
The building features giant stone letters on the top spelling out part of a speech that Obama gave in 2015 in Selma, Alabama, the cradle of the civil rights movement.
A replica of the Obama era Oval Office is seen in the museum on the Obama Presidential Center campus in Chicago (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP)
A slightly bigger than life-size statue of the Obamas waving welcomes guests to the museum, an AFP journalist saw during a media preview on Wednesday.
The museum itself begins with "Hope and Change Lobby" and moves on to a colossal four-storey-high screen showing scenes of the Obamas and the civil rights movement.
At the top is a stunning "Sky Room" with views over Chicago, where visitors can physically look through the words of Obama's speech.
A restaurant sells "The Obama Burger" for $15.50.
The first floor has items from the young Obama's life, including a cast of his handprint. The second floor moves on to his 2008 US election win, while the third celebrates the achievements of his presidency.
One of the most striking exhibits is an exact replica of Obama's Oval Office, where visitors can sit behind the full-scale Resolute Desk.
The comparison between Obama's rather minimalist version and Trump's maximalist gold-accented Oval is plain, if unspoken.
