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Holocaust Memorial

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Mandan Lynn
Mandan Lynn
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5 out of 5
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2
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Editor Pick

Holocaust Memorial

  • March 2, 2008
  • Rated 4 of 5 by oldscratch from New York, New York
Holocaust Memorial

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (or, simply, the Holocaust Memorial) covers almost five acres just south of the Brandenburg Gate and features over 2,700 undulating concrete slabs that rise between 8 inches and 16 feet high.

Upon opening to the public in 2005, the Holocaust Memorial immediately joined the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. as decidedly post-modern attempts to sanctify historic losses of human life. Also, both eschew literalism and symbolism for a blank memorial canvas upon which visitors are free to project their own thoughts of loss and contrition. As such, I wouldn’t recommend visiting the memorial with the expectation of receiving an explanation of what or how to feel. And because it’s designed as a “living memorial”, you also shouldn’t be surprised to find that not every visitor experiences it in the same way. For example, it’s a little disconcerting to see children running through the memorial and laughing, but when walking through the slabs it's also difficult to see how kids could resist finding the maze-like structure fun. And given that this was designed to be physically experienced rather than respected from afar, one might not consider this reaction of children to be at all inappropriate.

To my eye, the memorial is most thought-provoking from above, for from this vantage it most resembles what Wikipedia calls "a supposedly ordered system that has lost touch with human reason." From this angle the memorial evokes the horrifying orderliness with which the atrocities of the Holocaust were carried out, and it is this view (seen from photographs rather than in person) that I’ll ironically most remember.

From journal A Long Weekend in Berlin

Editor Pick

Holocaust Memorial

  • January 24, 2007
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Mandan Lynn from Smithwick, South Dakota
Holocaust Memorial

The first thing you notice is its size. The Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, erected only a few years ago, takes up an enormous chunk of space. It consists of stone slabs on uneven ground, each one of a different size, dividing the walking space into a grid.

On the edges, you can see across the entire thing, but as you walk through it the stones quickly swallow you up. The ground level varies quite a bit, so even though it looks like the slabs in the middle are only a little taller than the ones on the edges, they actually end up towering above your head by the time you get to the middle.

This is the most moving, easily understandable memorial I have ever seen. It is as if you don't realize what you are getting into. You start walking and before you know what has happened, you are in over your head. You realize that you haven't walked very far, that the way out can't be far behind, but you somehow can't help but keep walking to look for another way out. It seems an apt parallel for the Holocaust and the war.

This memorial is so special to me because it is something you can really feel and experience. It is not just a statue with a commemorative plaque. It is a lesson.

From journal Berlin: Little Time in a Big City

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