Thursday, February 28, 2013

"The Real War Will Never Get in the Books"

An excerpt from Specimen Days by Walt Whitman, 1881 on the collective memory of the Civil War:

           And so good-bye to the war. I know not how it may have been, or may be, to others — to me the main interest I found, (and still, on recollection, find,) in the rank and file of the armies, both sides, and in those specimens amid the hospitals, and even the dead on the field. To me the points illustrating the latent personal character and eligibilities of these States, in the two or three millions of American young and middle-aged men, North and South, embodied in those armies — and especially the one-third or one-fourth of their number, stricken by wounds or disease at some time in the course of the contest — were of more significance even than the political interests involved. (As so much of a race depends on how it faces death, and how it stands personal anguish and sickness. As, in the glints of emotions under emergencies, and the indirect traits and asides in Plutarch[1], we get far profounder clues to the antique world than all its more formal history.)
Future years will never know the seething hell and the black infernal background of countless minor scenes and interiors, (not the official surface-courteousness of the Generals, not the few great battles) of the Secession war; and it is best they should not—the real war will never get in the books. In the mushy influences of current times, too, the fervid atmosphere and typical events of those years are in danger of being totally forgotten. I have at night watch’d by the side of a sick man in the hospital, one who could not live many hours. I have seen his eyes flash and burn as he raised himself and recurr’d to the cruelties on his surrender’d brother, and mutilations of the corpse afterward. (See in the preceding pages, the incident at Upperville — the seventeen kill’d as in the description, were left there on the ground. After they dropt dead, no one touch’d them — all were made sure of, however. The carcasses were left for the citizens to bury or not, as they chose.)
Such was the war. It was not a quadrille[2] in a ball-room. Its interior history will not only never be written — its practicality, minutiae of deeds and passions, will never be even suggested. The actual soldier of 1862-’65, North and South, with all his ways, his incredible dauntlessness, habits, practices, tastes, language, his fierce friendship, his appetite, rankness, his superb strength and animality, lawless gait, and a hundred unnamed lights and shades of camp, I say, will never be written — perhaps must not and should not be.
The preceding notes may furnish a few stray glimpses into that life, and into those lurid interiors, never to be fully convey’d to the future. The hospital part of the drama from ’61 to ’65, deserves indeed to be recorded. Of that many-threaded drama, with its sudden and strange surprises, its confounding of prophecies, its moments of despair, the dread of foreign interference, the interminable campaigns, the bloody battles, the mighty and cumbrous and green armies, the drafts and bounties — the immense money expenditure, like a heavy-pouring constant rain — with, over the whole land, the last three years of the struggle, an unending, universal mourning-wail of women, parents, orphans — the marrow of the tragedy concentrated in those Army Hospitals—(it seem’d sometimes as if the whole interest of the land, North and South, was one vast central hospital, and all the rest of the affair but flanges)—those forming the untold and unwritten history of the war — infinitely greater (like life’s) than the few scraps and distortions that are ever told or written. Think how much, and of importance, will be—how much, civic and military, has already been — buried in the grave, in eternal darkness.


[1] Plutarch: noted Greek historian and biographer from the 1st Century A.D.
[2] quadrille: a popular 19th Century dance.

Thursday, February 21, 2013

US Coast Guard Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery

This is one of the memorials in Arlington that we didn't get to see. Two episodes in U.S. Coast Guard history prompted the construction of this memorial, which sits atop a hill near the southern edge of the cemetery. On September 21, 1918, the cutter Seneca was lost while attempting to salvage the British steamer, Wellington, which had been torpedoed in the Bay of Biscay. All officers and crew of the Seneca were lost. Only five days later, on September 26, 1918, the cutter Tampa was sunk by an enemy submarine in the British Channel, and all on board that ship were lost as well.

The names of these vessels and their crewman, as well as of all Coast Guard personnel who lost their lives during the Great War, are inscribed on the sides of the monument. The U.S. Coast Guard Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery was dedicated May 23, 1928.

In the monument's rock foundation and pyramid design, architect George Howe and sculptor Gaston Lachaise have captured the spirit of the Coast Guard's legendary steadfastness. A bronze sea gull, poised with its wings uplifted, alights below the Coast Guard motto Semper Paratus (Always Ready). This bird further symbolizes the tireless vigil that the U.S. Coast Guard maintains over the nation's maritime territory.



Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Fallen Astronaut Memorial/Space Mirror Memorial

Bearing the names of eight Americans and six Soviets who lost their lives in the advancement of space exploration. Its location is ON THE FREAKING MOON. 
Said to be the "First Art in Space" (are we calling memorials art?), it was installed in 1971 by the crew of Apollo 15. A 3" sculpture of a face-down astronaut lies on the surface of the moon, created by Belgian artist Paul Van Hoeydonck. Maybe this one is art, as it has a replica in the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum.


Not everyone who lost their lives up to that point is on the plaque, due to secrecy or other reasons there are two Soviets and two Americans whose names are not mentioned.



Luckily, there is also the Space Mirror Memorial, where the two Americans left out above find themselves memorialized. Located at John F. Kennedy Space Center on Merrit Island, Florida, this memorial is composed of 90 panels of black granite, with the names of 24 astronauts killed during human spaceflight missions or training. 



This Astronaut Memorial was designed by Wes Jones of Holt Hinshaw Pfau Jones and was commissioned after he won an international design competition.



But seriously, if you can't come up with a site I highly suggest placing your monument ON THE MOON.

Yad Vashem Memorial


As the Jewish people’s living memorial to the Holocaust, Yad Vashem safeguards the memory of the past and imparts its meaning for future generations. Established in 1953, as the world center for documentation, research, education and commemoration of the Holocaust, Yad Vashem is today a dynamic and vital place of intergenerational and international encounter.




Monday, February 18, 2013

Memorial to Walter Benjamin

This is the memorial constructed in honor of Walter Benjamin, a thinker of particular importance to architects, in Port Bou, Spain. It is believed he committed suicide (near this site) rather than continue dealing with the ongoing threat of his extermination.

Inscription on the glass panel at Walter Benjamin's memorial in Portbou. It is a quotation of his:

IT IS MORE ARDUOUS TO HONOUR THE MEMORY OF THE NAMELESS THAN THAT OF THE RENOWNED. HISTORICAL CONSTRUCTION IS DEVOTED TO THE MEMORY OF THE NAMELESS.








At first glance...

So this is not a memorial but an advertisement disguised as a memorial. It has flowers taped to a street lamp with the ad above it. Does it disrespect street memorials and the memory of those people, or is it kind of clever?


Changing Maps

Not all maps hold truth.



Saturday, February 9, 2013

MLK, Jr. Memorial



August 28, 2011, the 48th anniversary of the groundbreaking March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom witnessed the dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. It is fitting that on this date, reminiscent of the defining moment in Dr. King's leadership in the Civil Rights movement; in the form of solid granite, his legacy is further cemented in the tapestry of the American experience. His leadership in the drive for realization of the freedoms and liberties laid down in the foundation of the United States of America for all of its citizens, without regard to race, color, or creed is what introduced this young southern clergyman to the nation. The delivery of his message of love and tolerance through the means of his powerful gift of speech and eloquent writings inspire to this day, those who yearn for a gentler, kinder world . His inspiration broke the boundaries of intolerance and even national borders, as he became a symbol, recognized worldwide of the quest for civil rights of the citizens of the world.

The memorial is situated on a four-acre site along the Tidal Basin, adjacent to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial and sharing a direct line of sight between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. It is open daily, with park rangers on site from 8 a.m. to midnight.
The centerpiece of the memorial is a 30-foot statue of Dr. King. His likeness is carved into the Stone of Hope, which emerges powerfully from two large boulders. The two boulders, which started as one, represent the Mountain of Despair. The boulders are split in half to give way to the Stone of Hope, which appears to have been thrust forward toward the horizon in a great monolithic struggle. The Stone of Hope and the Mountain of Despair together represent the soul-stirring words from Dr. King’s history-making "I Have a Dream" speech. On the visible side of the Stone of Hope, the text from King’s famed 1963 speech is cut sharply into the rock: "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope." On the other side are inscribed these words: "I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness," a statement suggested by Dr. King himself when describing how he would like to be remembered. Every visitor enters through the Mountain of Despair and tours the memorial as if moving through the struggle that Dr. King faced during his life. Visitors end in the open freedom of the plaza. The solitary Stone of Hope stands proudly in the plaza, where the civil rights leader gazes over the Tidal Basin toward the horizon, forever encouraging all citizens to strive for justice and equality.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Milena Stopic Thesis Project--Princeton University

From Princeton University:


 



Milena Stopic  [ M.Arch. Thesis, Fall 2009 ]
Air Memorial: A New Commemorative Architecture

The architecture of commemoration typically regards the ground as the locus of history and therefore the primary material of reflection. However, when what is being commemorated has not been returned to the ground, we can instead conceive of an architecture of air. The historical affair providing the substrate for the project of this memorial is the extinction of Serbs and Serbian Jews in WWII by means of gas-asphyxiation. Beyond the mere traumatic recollection, the project seeks to express a novel thinking in commemorative design, whereby the notions of the use of overt traditional imagery, references, symbolism, meaning and narrative, shift to a favoring of diagrammatic abstraction, thus having the memorial act so as to evoke a specific human condition, rather than to (often literally) cite the peculiarities of the historic circumstance commemorated. The concern of memorial architecture has transferred from that of the narrative to that of the mood. This thesis sets to advance the discussion of the memorial by proposing, as a new model, an architecture that acts as a cohesive assembly of effects that re-echo one another and fuse into a singular vision. 


see the original page here

More Monument Love

I came across this monument while researching innocence. It is a monument to the victims of the Madrid bombings on March 11, 2004, which also happens to be 911 days after the September 11th terrorist attacks on the United States.


Using only glass blocks and "transparent adhesive," this 11 meter tall glass structure represents a remembrance atmosphere. Some would say that this void could be considered an architectural rendition of the artistic expression, otherwise known as the memorial... (That's for you Jamison)


http://www.estudiosic.es/index.php?/proyectos/monumento-a-las-victimas-del-11m/


Tuesday, February 5, 2013

DC Monuments

World War II Memorial


Designed to be "a monument to the spirit, sacrifice, and commitment of the American people to the common defense of the nation and to the broader causes of peace



and freedom from tyranny throughout the world".

In 2001, a national competition was held to determine who would design the memorial. The winner was Friedrich St. Florian, an architect based in Providence, R.I. Florian was dubbed lead designer and was joined by a team of additional design professionals, including sculptor Ray Kaskey and stone carver/letterer Nick Benson.

It sits on a 7.4 acre site and measures approximately
337 feet long by 240 feet wide.




George Mason Memorial


The George Mason Memorial honors contributions of one of our founding fathers. George Mason wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights and attended the Constitutional Convention in 1787. 

Mason, an Anti-Federalist, did not sign the US Constitution because it did not abolish the slave trade and because he did not think it had necessary protection for the individual from the federal government.


National Japanese American Memorial

By David Buckley Architects and James Urban Landscape Architecture along with artist Nina A. Akamu, the memorial commemorates the loyalty and patriotism of Japanese American veterans in World War II and remembers Japanese Americans held unlawfully in internment camps. The nautilus-shaped memorial is designed to guide visitors through sensations of confinement and release, evoking the experience of Japanese Americans during the war.



The Maine Lobstermen Memorial

Obscure Monument in Washington D.C.

Artist: Victor A. Kahill
Completed: 1939, 1983
Original Location: Maine Exhibit in 1939 New York World's Fair



This monument was originally created to demonstrate the livelihood of H. Elroy Johnson who made his living catching and selling lobsters in Maine. The monument was abused and neglected until 1983 when it was officially cast in bronze and displayed in Washington D.C. To read more about this obscure monument, visit www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11306


Monday, February 4, 2013

Statue of Providence/Statue of Responsibility

DISCLAIMER: I found these on Buzzfeed, so they just sort of fell into my lap, but they still seem relevant, and related to what me might be trying to accomplish here.

Statue of Responsibility

Unbuilt, still needs to raise money. Would have a west coast location.
Plus, dope hand renderings.









Statue of Providence

Also to be constructed on the west coast, but currently not funded. This proposed monument symbolizing would about 2/3 the height of the Statue of Liberty with the base included. She will patina to the color of Lady Liberty. Providence, according to the sculptor, is an understanding that our dependence (on God, others and self) is the only thing that can complete our independence or liberty.   







Albert Einstein Memorial

In rather stark contrast to most monuments dedicated to people, this monument dedicated to Albert Einstein is not mounted on a pedestal, but seated on a bench, and rather approachable and inviting (although it is twice as tall as the average man).

Einstein's book is engraved with his three most important equations, and more than 2,700 metal studs are embedded in the base, denoting the location of various astronomical objects at the time of its dedication.  If you stand in the center of the platform, Einstein appears to be making direct eye contact.


More information can be found here.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

The Aschrott-Brunnen Monument

In 1908, Sigmund Aschrott, a successful Jewish businessman, funded the creation of a fountain in front of the City Hall in his German town of Kassel. Since it was a gift from a Jew, the Nazis tore down the Aschrott-Brunnen Fountain in April of 1939, leaving only the sandstone base. 


Original Monument


Within three years after that, more than 3,000 Jews from Kassel had been transported east a concentration camps in Poland and Latvia, and all were murdered.
In the 1980s, the Society for the Rescue of Historical Monuments initiated an effort to restore some type of fountain on the site that would memorialize the founders and benefactors of the town, especially Sigmund Aschrott. By that point in time, almost no one in the town remembered the actual history of the ruined fountain. The common assumption was that it had been destroyed by Allied bombing during World War II.
The new project was awarded to a local artist, Horst Hoheisel, who wrestled with the history of the original fountain and the role that a new monument would play in the community.
Hoheisel proposed recreating the original fountain as a hollow concrete shell, displaying it for a short time upright in the City Hall Square, and then burying it upside down in the exact location of the original monument. This hollow, inverted version of the fountain would be covered by glass and a grate that traced the outline of its bottom, so that people could walk across it and look into its emptiness. They would also hear water falling to the bottom of the inverted fountain, suggesting its 12 meter depth below ground.

Hoheisel's goal was to recreate the old fountain, but in a way that suggested loss, emptiness, and the painful history that had been blurred and forgotten by the town. A reconstruction of the fountain in its original form would have suggested what some countermonument artists refer to as Widergutmachen,, or making something again, or simply repairing it.
Hoheisel did not want his response to the Aschrott-Brunnen to suggest anything redeeming, comforting, or corrected. The history of the fountain and of Kassel's Jews could not be mitigated or softened by a monument that was inadvertently soothing or aesthetically pleasing.

For Hoheisel, the sunken fountain
is not the memorial at all. It is only history turned into a pedestal, an invitation to passersby who stand upon it to search for the memorial in their own heads. For only there is the memorial to be found.
The only way I know to make this loss visible is through a perceptibly empty space, representing the space once occupied. Instead of continuously searching for yet another explanation or interpretation of that which has been lost, I prefer facing the loss as a vanished form. A reflective listening into the void, into the negative of an irretrievable form, where the memory of that which has been lost resounds, is preferable to a mere numb endurance of the facts.





Invisibility

Another take on the definition or classification of what is invisible. While it may not be entirely relevant to any of our proposal now, it still provides some possible topics or mediums to explore. 

Roosevelt Island

From the National Park Service:
"In the 1930s landscape architects transformed Mason’s Island from neglected, overgrown farmland into Theodore Roosevelt Island, a memorial to America’s 26th president. They conceived a “real forest” designed to mimic the natural forest that once covered the island. Today miles of trails through wooded uplands and swampy bottomlands honor the legacy of a great outdoorsman and conservationist."



This island sits in the Potomac River, just west of the city center.
Accesible only from the northbound lanes of the George Washington Memorial Parkway or via pedestrian bridge. In the middle of the island there is a bronze statue of Teddy Roosevelt and 4 granite tablets inscribed with his philosophies. 

Sonny Bono Memorial Park

Sonny Bono Memorial Park is a park in Northwest Washington, D.C., at the intersection of New Hampshire Avenue, 20th Street, and O Street near Dupont Circle. It is named for Sonny Bono. The park was established in 1998 after Sonny Bono's death by Bono family friend Geary Simon, a local real estate developer. He approached the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation's Park Partners program and paid $25,000 of his own money to revitalize an unused 800-square-foot triangle of grass. His improvements included installing an underground sprinkler system, planting new Kentucky bluegrass and a Japanese maple, as well as benches and a wrought-iron fence. The park also features a vault of Sonny Bono memorabilia, such as the sheet music for "The Beat Goes On," his official Congressional cufflinks, and a mug from his string of Bono's Restaurants. 

 At the entrance, on the ground, is a plaque that reads as follows: "IN MEMORY OF MY FRIEND SONNY BONO 1935-1998; ENTERTAINER - ENTREPRENEUR - STATESMAN - FRIEND."


Vietnam Veterans Memorial

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial was designed by Maya Lin. Her concept was picked out of a pool of over 2000 applicants (The display board is pictured below). She wanted to create a park within a park - a quiet protected place onto itself, yet harmonious with the overall plan of Constitution Gardens. The walls have a mirror-like surface (polished black granite) reflecting the images of the surrounding trees, lawns, monuments, and visitors. The walls seem to stretch into the distance, directing us towards the Washington Monument, in the east, and the Lincoln Memorial, to the west, thus bring the Vietnam Veterans Memorial into a historical context. The wall is accompanied by a sculpture and a flagpole.

Each of the walls is 246.75 feet long, composed of 70 separate inscribed granite panels, plus 4 at the end without names. The panels themselves are 40 inches in width; the largest panels have 137 lines of names, while the shortest have one; there are five names on each line, although with new additions of names, some lines now have six. The walls are supported by 140 concrete pilings driven approximately 35 feet to bedrock; at the vertex the walls are
10.1 feet in height.





Henry "Box" Brown: Forever

Henry "Box" Brown was a slave who bought his freedom by shipping himself to freedom in a crate. Wilmer Wilson IV memorializes Brown by covering himself in stamps, going to post offices and asking to be sent. This was in D.C but clearly is not really a destination. Also, no word on what would have happened if any of the post offices complied with his request...

Saturday, February 2, 2013

OWS/99%

That's not real, don't worry but it is a kind of memorial and very much invisible in that it is a joke from the Daily Show. I was legitimately shocked, however, that this was all I found when I was searching for a memorial for OWS or the 99%.

Friday, February 1, 2013

Ghost Bikes

Pretty self-explanatory. They have an entire website and they are in many different countries.