"The Clearing", memorial to Norway's July 22 attacks, opens on the tragedy's fourth anniversary

2015-07-22T19:30:00-04:00

Called Lysningen or ‘The Clearing’, it has been designed by the Bergen-based architects 3RW. [...] “It is actually much better than I had thought,.” [Jørgen Watne Frydnes, the general manager of Utøya,] said. “The frame around the woods and the silence of nature, makes it feel like a well.”

On July 22, 2011, on the island of Utøyah, a lone gunman named Anders Breivik attacked a youth summer camp run by the Norwegian Workers’ Youth League (AUF), killing 69 people. Today, on the fourth anniversary of the attack, a memorial to the victims officially opens on the island. Known as “Lysningen" (The Clearing), the memorial is designed by Bergen-based firm 3RW, and was selected through a competition hosted by AUF.

The design features a large metal ring, inscribed with the victims' names, suspended from pine trees over a clearing made by 3RW.

Vegard Grøslie Wennesland, a survivor of the Utøya attack who served on the memorial committee, says of 3RW's design: "the idea is both sophisticated and unpretentious. No matter what social, cultural or religious affiliation, you can feel welcome here. It will be a beautiful place for remembrance."

Another competition, for two public memorials – one in Utøya and one in Oslo, where Breivik perpetrated a bombing attack on the same day – was wo...

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"The Clearing", memorial to Norway's July 22 attacks, opens on the tragedy's fourth anniversary