From the 110th floor to Ground Zero
A case study on the design of the 9/11 Memorial
V.J.W. van Minkelen (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
S. Tanović – Mentor (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
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Abstract
The buildings that used to be 110 storeys high had collapsed to Ground Zero, at the 11th of September 2001. A memorial was built in honour of those who had died. Its design came from architect Michael Arad of Handel Architects and landscape architect Peter Walker. It was a difficult task to design a memorial which was theoretically and visually designed to represent a traumatic historical incident. To understand how the memorial is designed, it was important to understand the very meaning of the memorial’s name, “Reflecting Absence”, which refers to the traumatic past and the psychological experiences of its place, space, and time. Next to the memorial is the museum located. Both the memorial as the museum make use of a lot of contrasts and symbolics. The contrasts are used to create a balanced design. The architecture of the memorial appeared to be successful in setting up the right conditions for deep feelings of grief and memory.