Minimal Structure

I would like to go over a monument that is minimal in design. These simple forms are meant to provoke an emotional exploration about the piece and what it represents. There are different emotions and perspective when reacting to these works. Color such as black can be interpreted negatively to biased viewers because it represents sadness, death, and fear. Black is a powerful neutral hue that can dominate the whole structure or any composition if it’s the main hue. It is also able to capture a person attention that they would want to explore it.      

Maya Ying Lin Vietnam Veteran Memorial
Washington D.C., 1981-1983

A famous structure that uses black is Maya Lin’s minimalist landscape architectural piece or the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Her design for the memorial was picked from jurors who happened to be architects, sculptors and landscape architects. Located at the Constitution Gardens in Washington D.C. it varies greatly with all the massive white monuments hundreds of yards away such as the Washington Monument.

Maya Ying Lin Vietnam Veteran Memorial
Washington D.C., 1981-1983

The wall is shaped like a wide angle like the letter “V” which starts at ground level that descends 10 feet in the initial point of the wings. The wings or the magnitudes from the initial point are 256 feet long. The monument is below the grassy landscape because it is suppose to be a reminder of the many soldiers who are also buried under the living world. Because it carves into the earth, it is also a violent act on the grassy slope surrounding it because it is suppose to leave a scar on this ordinarily green living environment for everyone to view. She achieved this by adding the black glossy granite panels for the wall contrasting greatly with the landscape. It can also be a reminder of the consequence of war with the 58,175 names from casualties and missing. The ocean of names is engraved in white to be a distinction of the black polished granite. The black granite plane has the qualities of a mirror making it a greater impact for the viewer. It shows the reflection of oneself isolated with many names penetrating ones reflection.

Three Soldier Frederick Hart 1984 Vietnam Veterans Memorial Washington D.C.

Some people didn’t understand Lin’s monument because it wasn’t the idealized or realistic. The Three Soldiers from Frederick Hart was supposed to silence the negative comment coming from other Vietnam veterans. People believed at the time of construction that Lin’s wall with its minimalistic form undermined the efforts of the Vietnam War. Three life size bronze soldiers one representing the marines, and two others the army. They are distinguished by clothing and weaponry to represent the two branches that mainly fought the war. They have a realistic approach to them because the uniforms and weapons were standard at the time of the war, but they are the idealized version of warriors for the Vietnam War. The soldiers face the wall so one can see their reflection hundreds of yards away.

For myself, it can be interpreted as a counter monument of two governments and ideological power struggle and the immense sacrifice people have to do to protect the main power. I’m glad Lin put the names of casualties and missing in action to make people remember that winning or losing a war are only achieved by the enlisted.