Alternative to a Memorial Essay

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9/11 Memorial in New York City

Selection Analysis

"Memorials serve so many essential functions: they give us a context for remembering the past, engaging the present, and reflecting on the future. We are seeking to honor the lives lost in the attacks of 9/11 on New York City -- and on Washington, DC and the flight that ended in Shanksville, PA -- as well as during the attack on the World Trade Center on February 26, 1993. We also need to commemorate the resilience as well as the grieving of survivors, co-workers, neighbors, and citizens profoundly affected. The values of liberty and democracy transcend geography and nationality, and they must be given physical expression as we reimagine Lower Manhattan (Lower Manhattan Developent Corporation, 2003)."

Introduction

The World Trade Center site was developed and constructed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey which formed an interstate compact for the project. The site is composed of roughly sixteen acres and before 9/11, there were six primary buildings on this site; most notably WTC1 and WTC2 which stood over thirteen hundred feet tall. However, after the events of September 11th, 2001, the site was forever changed. The memorial that was to be constructed on top the site was notably one the most important projects in NYC's recent history and as a consequence city planners held a competition for design ideas. There were more than five thousand design entries presented to the board for the construction of the New York City (NYC) World Trade Center (WTC) memorial site and these entries filtered in from all over the world.

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These designs were whittled down to just five winners who then advanced into a stage II in which they continued to develop their ideas. Ultimately the city's representatives chose the design ideas of Michael Arad who actually witnessed the plane hit the South Tower from his roof. This analysis will provide a brief overview of the design concept as well as some of the criticisms that have been made in regards to the design.

Figure 1 - Memorial Site Plan (Lower Manhattan Developent Corporation, 2003)

The Design Concept

The memorial occupies roughly one half of the sixteen acre WTC site and includes four hundred white swamp trees on the grounds while the memorial consists of two giant waterfalls that outline the structure of the towers; the water drops from street level and vanishes into the holes left by what were once the tallest buildings in New York (Sisto, 2014). The bottom of the water basin in not visible to onlookers and the marble railing surrounding the waterfalls is engraved with names of the victims of the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. The memorial also is adjacent to the National September 11th Memorial Museum which has been the source of much criticism.

Michael Arad, the designer and architect who won the contest and….....

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