Shaping the City: Washington Memorials
http://thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2012-03-29/shaping-city-washington-memorials
A prominent family, a famous architect, and Washington's historic cityscape are at the center of a controversy over the proposed Eisenhower memorial. The commission that selected Frank Gehry's design concept did so despite objections from the Eisenhower family and other vocal critics of the proposal. Yet every major monument in Washington, including the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, faced harsh critics initially. We explore the renewed debate over how we memorialize great Americans in the nation's capital.
Guests
Roger Lewis
Architect; Columnist, "Shaping the City," Washington Post; and Professor Emeritus of Architecture, University of Maryland College Park
Susan Eisenhower
President of the Eisenhower Group, Inc; Chairman, Leadership and Public Policy Programs, Eisenhower Institute
Carl Reddel
Executive Director, Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission; Ret. Brig. Gen. with the USAF.
Related Links
Related Video
Architect Frank Gehry speaks to the National Capital Planning Commission on his design team's direction for the Eisenhower memorial design in 2010:
Comments
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I am worried that this memorial and the FDR memorial are too big. If this approach continues, DC will be turned into a graveyard instead of a living city.
Also, this site is being described as a park, but I think it is an intersection of several streets, a playground and a garden. Is this right?
Frank Gehry is a designer of many talents, few of which are evident in this design
The faux room is large and yet manages to feel calustrophobic
Roger is correct that an object/objects in the space that visitors could walk around would do much more to welcome visitors and would be less hostile to the neighborhood around it.
Perhaps the design is a reflection of our inability to process abstract notions and ideas. Everything needs to be spelled out and tape measured, and that at the lowest-denominator level.
It is unfortunate that Mr. Gherry found the need to punish instead of educating us.