TO THE STRUGGLE AGAINST WORLD TERRORISM

http://www.911monument.com/history.cfm ^

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To the Struggle Against World Terrorism: A History Zurab Tsereteli

The artist, Zurab Tsereteli, was in his home in Moscow on the morning of September 11th. The television was on as he was getting ready for work and Zurab, like the rest of the world, was glued to coverage of the attacks on the Twin Towers. He watched the towers collapse on TV and was moved to tears.

That day, he went to work at the Academy of Art driving on a route that takes him past the American Embassy. People were gathered outside the embassy gates to pay sympathies, to be together, and to mourn. He saw a mass of crying people and decided to use the image of a tear in a memorial.

He set to work that day on a proper and appropriate form through which to express his feelings over the attack. He went through many various sketches and 'forms' (all of which are chronicled in the yellow book) until finally deciding on the current monument's form.

Zurab traveled to NY shortly after the September 11th and went to ground zero. The ruins were still steaming. He decided that he wanted to create a memorial to the victims; but that wouldn't want to build on top of the bones of the dead on the ground zero site. He began to look for an appropriate and fitting site on which to erect the memorial.

Zurab spoke with friends and colleagues who were in NY during the attacks. He heard stories about how boats and ferries were used to shuttle survivors away from the Twin Towers. He also learned about the New Jersey residents who worked in the towers. Zurab decided to look for a site in New Jersey, where the monument could be on the waterfront and settled on a never before seen area of the peninsula at Bayonne. Here, the World Trade Center was the backdrop to the waterfront, and so, the backdrop of life. The site had been a military instillation, and the town had decided to convert the land into public park-space. 911 Monument along the banks of the Hudson River in Bayonne, NJ

From this vantage point, the Twin Towers looked almost as if they were in fact one building. His bronze monument reflects that image with a jagged tear through the center, and a 4-ton nickel tear hanging from the top. The tear represents not only the sadness and grief over the loss of life on 9/11 and previous attacks on the World Trade Center, but also hope for a future free from terror.

The monument has several reflective elements, so that the visitor becomes part of the memorial. The nickel tear is shiny and mirror like. The granite name plates which make up the stand for the monument, and on which the names of the victims are etched, is also shiny and reflective.

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Dedication Ceremony: September 11, 2006 President Clinton Speaks at the Dedication Ceremony on September 11, 2006 - President Clinton's speech: Video of President Clinton's speech at the Dedication Ceremony, September 11, 2006 Video of President Clinton's speech at the Dedication Ceremony, September 11, 2006

On September 11, 2006, the fifth anniversary of the tragedy, the monument To the Struggle Against World Terrorism was dedicated. The ceremony started with the performance of the National Anthems of the United States and the Russian Federation. Former United States President William Jefferson Clinton was the keynote speaker. Sharing the podium with him were the Honorable Sergei Mironov, Chairman of the Council of Federation of the Russian Federal Assembly; Michael Chertoff, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security; John S. Corzine, Governor of New Jersey; Bill Thompson, Comptroller of New York City; Joseph Doria, Mayor of the City of Bayonne; Zurab Tsereteli, the artist and President of the Russian Academy of Arts; members of the United States Senate; members of the Presidium of the Russian Federation and family members of the victims of 9/11. Together with the distinguished speakers, hundreds of residents of New York and Bayonne, as well as other representatives of the American and Russian public, stood in memory of those who died.

Speaking on behalf of the government of the Russian Federation, Sergei Mironov, Chairman of the Council of Federation of the Russian Federal Assembly, reminded those gathered that Russian President Vladimir Putin was the first foreign leader to call President George Bush on September 11, 2001 to express condolences and offer assistance. Chairman Mironov said, “The entire civilized world understands that terrorism has no boundaries and nationalities; it does not depend upon skin color or creed. We have to work together in an anti terrorist coalition. ...[t]he most important thing is the security of citizens of every nation on our planet.”

After thanking “my friend ZurabTsereteli for one more time capturing the remarkable feelings that go beyond words,” President Clinton said, “Our memories mark this day far more than any words can. Senator Menendez said 9/11 gave us a moment of national and global unity all together too rare in these contentious times. It was a moment when we all knew that our common humanity is far, far more important than any differences we have. My prayer is that today we might recover some sense of that unity to finish the tasks that lay before us in the ashes of the World Trade Center, in the gaping wound of the Pentagon, and in that lonely field in Pennsylvania, by supporting the families of those killed and the injured, by improving our defenses, and by holding the terrorists accountable in the global world with more partners and fewer terrorists.“

After the ceremony, those attending laid flowers at the Monument’s base, which bears the names of all those who perished.

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Maybe I’m a philistine. I see an artistic expression of damage and tears.