The UK Government and Malcolm Reading Consultants have announced today an international competition for the design of a new National Memorial to commemorate the events of the Holocaust.
To be located next to Parliament in Victoria Tower Gardens in London, the new national landmark will "demonstrate the UK’s commitment to honouring the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, providing a place for quiet reflection as well as large-scale national commemorations." The competition brief also calls for the design of a potential below-ground learning center to accompany the memorial, which would provide visitors with the opportunity to learn more about the history of the Holocaust and the context of the memorial itself.
From the Competition Organizers:
Envisaged as a place for everyone to come to remember the Holocaust, as well as a focal point for annual national commemorations, the Memorial will affirm the United Kingdom’s commitment to stand up against prejudice and hatred. It is intended to inspire reflection and compassion, and encourage present and future generations to respect and embrace difference. In parallel, a new Learning Centre is planned, subject to technical, financial, planning or other constraints, which will advance Holocaust education across the United Kingdom and help visitors develop a deeper understanding of how societal breakdown can, in the worst cases, lead to genocide.
The Memorial’s site, alongside the Houses of Parliament at the heart of Britain’s democracy, is in Victoria Tower Gardens adjacent to the River Thames. The Gardens already has a memorial-narrative inspired by democratic values, which aligns with the project. Three prominent monuments, dating from the mid-to-late nineteenth and early twentieth century, commemorate the expansion of suffrage, the abolition of slavery and civic sacrifice.
The design challenge is to create an outstanding and sensitively-designed Memorial and Learning Centre that is emotionally powerful while offering visitors an opportunity to deepen their understanding of humanity’s darkest hour. For some survivors – and those whose lives were affected by the Holocaust – survival stories can reveal glimmers of hope about human nature; for others, to perceive this moment in history as anything but unbearable is to compromise the Holocaust’s implacability.
This is a two-stage international design competition and is being run in accordance with EU procurement guidelines and the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. This competition has been advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU).
No design is required at the first stage. Initially, competitors are invited to submit an Expression of Interest – the deadline for this is: 14:00 BST Monday 17 October 2016.
An exhibition of the finalist teams’ concept designs will be held in a central London location in January 2017.
More information about the competition, including a full project brief, can be found on the competition website, here.
Title
Malcolm Reading Consultants Announces UK Holocaust Memorial International Design CompetitionType
Competition Announcement (Built Projects & Masterplans)Website
Organizers
Registration Deadline
October 17, 2016 02:00 PMAddress