"What has fueled the Eisenhower memorial controversy in the media are the public pronouncements of two of the president’s granddaughters, Susan and Anne Eisenhower, who have proclaimed themselves dissatisfied with the design. Understandably, their position is being taken seriously. Yet I am concerned that the growing public brouhaha will ultimately weaken the memorial design." — The New York Times Op-ed by Witold Ribczynski
Witold Ribczynski adds his opinion and some new information to the Eisenhower Memorial design debate with this Op-ed piece for The New York Times.
3 Comments
What was that about open competitions not being the way to select memorial designs? I wasn't expecting to read that, I wish he had elaborated more. It could be an interesting discussion.
"The four finalists who prepared designs for the memorial were picked, by a jury that included Eisenhower’s grandson David, from a list compiled by a panel of leading architects, who in turn chose from among 44 firms that submitted their names to the memorial commission. Ever since the Vietnam Veterans Memorial competition was won by Maya Lin, then a college student, it is taken for granted that the best memorial designs are the result of open competitions, in which hundreds of (largely unqualified) individuals compete.
But the accepted wisdom is wrong — the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is an exception. It’s worth remembering that the Lincoln Memorial was the result of a competition between only two young architects — Henry Bacon and John Russell Pope — and the loser, Pope, was later invited to design the Jefferson Memorial; no one else was considered.
What’s more, both the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial were the objects of criticism when they were proposed: why was Lincoln portrayed as a tired rather than a triumphant leader; why was Jefferson housed in a Roman temple? Today, of course, these memorials are among the country’s most beloved structures. "
Eisenhower's daughters are correct. The design is awful. Why should Gehry alone decide what this memorial should look like? He has created a lot of awful designs in his life, along with his works of genius. This project should get a new design. Gehry should bow out gracefully, admit defeat and return his $16M fee. Let someone else try.
'gehry alone' hasn't decided anything. everyone against this design *willfully* forgets that it was supported by its clients - including an eisenhower - before it wasn't supported anymore.
maybe it won't get built, but the fee is gehry's to keep. if an architecture firm proceeds through the phases of a design project and gets approvals every step of the way, that firm has provided the professional services asked of them. if the clients change their minds, the architect may not be due the remainder of the fee, but they certainly wouldn't have to return monies earned.
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