Manhattan-based Zerafa Architecture Studio has been announced as winner of a competition to design a monument to Orange County’s crime victims. Placed between two natural mounds on axis with Irvine’s Mason Regional Park office, the winning scheme carves a subtle, circular void within the park’s forested landscape that offers a range of experiences to the community.
Visitors approach the Orange County Victims’ Memorial via a lighted circular path of grass pavers, which defines the eastern edge of an event space and open lawn. Though the pathway gently leads them to the memorial’s entrance, visitors are encouraged to experience the memorial in their own way, whether intimately from within or overlooking from the above.
Once inside the tapered void, a wall of bronze plates encircles visitors with inscribed victim names illuminated from within. A continous concrete bench offsets the interior core and provides seating for those wishing for a more contemplative experience within arms reach of the wall.
Competition
Orange County Crime Victims' MemorialAward
First PrizeArchitects
Location
William R Mason Regional Park, 18712 University Drive, Irvine, CA 92612, USADesign Architect
Zerafa Studio with Gregory T. WaughDesign Team
Jason M Zerafa, Gregory T Waugh, Patrick C Clare, Nick T WinterClient
OC Crime Victims' Memorial Foundation / OC ParksProject Year
2014Photographs
Zerafa StudioCompetition
Orange County Crime Victims' MemorialAward
First PrizeLocation
William R Mason Regional Park, 18712 University Drive, Irvine, CA 92612, USAProject Year
2014Photographs
Zerafa Studio
