It’s no stretch of the imagination to say that memorials are art, but it’s an entirely different story when one tries to say that art is a memorial. No doubt, when an artist or person is given the task of making a memorial, be it for something on the scale of the Twin Towers or in Oklahoma, it is an honor. It is both because it is a memorial and that all memorials are art that they contain a certain element of beauty that no other type of art has. Memorials have the ability to instantly touch our hearts and obtain our respect.
The memorial at Oklahoma was created well after the bombing had occurred, which speaks nothing of how much the citizens wanted to do it, but rather when they were able to do it. There was a lot of work and thought put into who would make the memorial and how it should look and represent those who lost their lives at the bombing. I find it interesting to note that both memorial references made in the reading were made by unknown artists, and therefore, not so famous ones. I think this tells people how memorials are in an entirely different class than any other forms of art. Also, how anyone has the ability to create something that can touch the hearts of many others.
I thing the memorial made in Oklahoma is unique. The artists used open chairs to represent the people who lost their lives, and then a playing of a board meeting that happened just moments before the bombing. The writer says that this is a memorial that attempts to combine compassion and entertainment. Another interesting fact about this memorial was that the artist and their design were chosen by the people of Oklahoma, and not professional art critics. Memorials, although mostly inspired by a tragic event, are the most powerful forms of art.
I think your comment about how memorials are an honor for an artist because they instantly gain respect and evoke feeling is very well said. Memorials are indeed very powerful, and in a way they have a framework before they're even created. There's already so much attachment to their concepts before they're created that by the time they're actually formed and physically viewable, the acknowedgement extends far beyond the beauty of the artwork. There's a deeply rooted sadness or appreciation evoked simply in the remembrance of something or someone.
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