On September 11, 2001 I was watching a cartoon that I had highly anticipated. I was sitting comfortably on the couch in my medium sized dining room, in Bulgaria. It was about 4.30pm (there's a 7 hour time difference between New York and Bulgaria). Next thing I knew the show had been interrupted. I remember getting extremely upset. How dare they interrupt something of such vital importance!!!! I vaguely remember seeing the image of the twin towers covered in smoke on my TV screen. I flipped through the channels only to see the same disturbing image over and over again. I ran into the living room and asked my grandparents what had happened. I was only 11 years old and I had never heard of the World Trade Center. All I knew was that something really bad had happened in the infamous New York City. Since at that time I lived so far away, the 9/11 tragedy didn't really effect my life. The thought of all these innocent people being murdered in such a vicious way was extremely saddening. However, nothing in our lives really changed. Once my family and I moved to Queens (in 2003) and we spend our first September 11th in NY, the emotional intensity was overwhelming. I was now 13 years old and got to witness some footage from the tragic day. I remember seeing people jump from some of the buildings' highest floors. I couldn't imagine how terrified they must have been to willingly choose to jump.
Jeffrey Lohn
"Missing Flyers"
September- December 2001
Lohn's work truly touched me. It consisted of photos made of missing persons flyers. Every single poster was of a person who had disappeared on 9/11. On many of the flyers a few words has been added in using a pen. Usually those words simply stated that the person was found and he/she was dead. I was well aware of the fact that many people's lives had been taken on that day in 2001. However actually seeing these flyers, the photos of the people and the description of the outfits they wore on that day made me realize how real that tragedy had been. It had always seemed so surreal. Growing up miles away from NY had shielded me from fully grasping the impact of 9/11. It had never occurred to me that there must have been tons of missing persons flyers all over the city.
Janet Cardiff
"The Forty Part Motet"
2001
This was, by far, my absolute favorite piece of art at PS1. Actually, it was probably one of the most beautiful things I have ever experienced! Aside from the fact that the work had been recorded in an incredibly interesting way that gave the public the choice of either listening to each of the vocalists individually, or listening to the entire choir; it was very relaxing. I think the piece had been completed before the attacks on September 11 happened. In my opinion, the reason "The Forty Part Motet" had been included in the show was because it offered some sort of comfort. Even after the occurrence of such a terrifying attack, as 9/11 was, works as this one reminded people that beauty and harmony still did very much exist.
George Segal
"Woman on a Park Bench"
1998
Initially, I didn't quite understand why Segal's sculpture of a woman sitting on a park bench would have anything to do with September 11th. Now I wonder whether she could possibly represent New Yorkers starting off their day as usual, when suddenly everything came crushing down? As terrible as I feel about writing this, the woman got me to envision mothers (or babysitters) taking their little ones to the park playground early in the morning. In my opinion, Segal's sculpture could be interpreted as symbolizing the beginning of a normal day, which unexpectedly took a turn for the much, much worse.
Both of the exhibitions we visited were very powerful. They brought out very intense feelings that I'd usually rather not face. They have, in their own ways, immortalized the tragedy that profoundly effected this entire nation. They serve as painful reminders and beautiful solaces.
No comments:
Post a Comment