On Monday, June 22, 2009, two Metro trains collided, abruptly ending nine lives and affecting countless others. Each who lost their life on that day had a unique story to tell. They came from diverse backgrounds and lived in many different locations in the region. Although these individuals boarded the red line on that day with varied destinations, the accident that followed bound them together forever.
The team of RKW and REFORM submitted this concept for the Metro Memorial Park design competition. With our design we hoped to provide those affected with a place to remember significant moments, reflect on their loss, and draw strength and inspiration for the future.
Our proposal uses the notion of “time” as a means of celebrating the individual qualities and achievements of the victims, revealing relationships between the moments in their lives, and illustrating links that forever bind them together. Within the Memorial Garden, complex readings emerge through elements set symbolically in reference to one another. Every element of the garden holds meaning. Each wall represents one victim. The length of the walls relate to the age of each victim. The walls and ground plane are marked to indicate significant life moments. Pools of water extend out from the walls suggesting that, even though the victims are no longer physically present, they will continue to have a lasting impact.
