 According to Safdie , the building " is by definition the physical symbol of peace in the capital 's skyline " and needed to convey the spirit of peace . Safdie stated : " I 'm not one who believes in overt symbolism , but my sense of a building dedicated to peace was a sense of the lightness of being , ... It should be a serene building . It should not be an aggressive building . It should be full of light . " Safdie achieved this by designing a glass curtain wall facing the Lincoln Memorial and a billowing glass ceiling . The ceiling is one of the building elements in common with Safdie 's design for the Yitzhak Rabin Center in Israel . The 8 inches ( 20 cm ) thick roof is made of 1 @,@ 482 white glass panels and supported by steel frames while the interior of the roof is covered by a translucent plastic film . It is opaque and white during the day and glows at night . 
