Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial | Boston Common | Downtown

[statler]

So apparently this is going to be a lot more than just a simple statue.

If anyone can find some sources aside from this Globe article, it would be much appreciated.

Finalists in MLK memorial design competition unveiled

In a storied history spanning four centuries, Boston Common has played host to grazing cows, a military encampment, victory gardens, and a bandstand modeled after a Greek temple.
Soon, the iconic park could feature one of its most dramatic additions: a large, visually striking memorial to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King.
Five designs selected by a committee of city officials, artists, and academics will be unveiled Tuesday, giving the public a chance to comment on the proposals before the panel picks the winner in November.

The mirrored-bronze interlocking arms, by Hank Willis Thomas, a Brooklyn-based conceptual artist, working with the MASS Design Group.

The “Empty Pulpit” sculpture by the writer and sculptor Barbara Chase-Riboud.

The “Avenue of Peace” by Yinka Shonibare, a British artist of Nigerian descent.

The two “beacon towers” that emit light and sound are part of a sprawling proposal by the Cambridge-based firms Wodiczko + Bonder and Maryann Thompson Architects, working with Walter Hood, the founder of a California designer firm.

The black stone bridge is a collaboration between several artists and design firms: Adam Pendleton, Adjaye Associates, David Reinfurt, FuturePace, and Gilbane Boston.

 

[statler]

I'm curious how people are going to react to these proposals. On one hand, the Common is considered sacred space in this city, so this type of monumental change would normally be doomed. On the other hand... MLK.

 

[Coyote137]

The proposals are definitely bold. I'm having a hard time believing that changes this drastic would make it through.

 

[statler]

I can't imagine a large grass-root effort to oppose a memorial to MLK will get a lot of traction in Boston. Even to say 'it is too grand' is kind of a bad look.

Personally, I like the bridge design but I wish it was along Beacon Street not Park St.

 

[Equilibria]

If anyone can find some sources aside from this Globe article, it would be much appreciated.

The project has a website, but it is VERY slow to load, at least on Firefox.

http://mlkboston.org/art/

WBUR has more renderings:

http://www.wbur.org/artery/2018/09/18/mlk-memorial-boston-common-artist-proposals

I'm also partial to the bridge, since it could also serve to relocate a lot of protests from Beacon Street (with the overhang being a speaker's platform). Nice living tribute to MLK, and fewer street closures.

 

[HenryAlan]

Personally, I like the bridge design but I wish it was along Beacon Street not Park St.

The renderings on the NPR article show it at Beacon, directly across from the State House. I agree, this one is very good.

 

[Ruairi]

although the embracing arms one is quite literal, I kind of like the idea of an iconic piece that would be an instant landmark, kinda like the bean in Chicago.

 

[Justin7]

Direct link to each .PDF:

The Ripple Effects

Avenue of Peace

The Embrace

Empty Pulpit Monument

Bridge

 

[tangent]

The renderings on the NPR article show it at Beacon, directly across from the State House. I agree, this one is very good.

That "ramps to nowhere" piece is horrific both as art and as landscape. Don't like the pointy pulpit thing sticking up in front of the state house like a prickly cactus. The others are much better or could be improved upon.

 

[statler]

I have no idea why I thought the bridge was on Park Street. It is very clearly Beacon even in the first render.

The second render confirmed it as my top pick.

 

[tangent]

I have no idea why I thought the bridge was on Park Street. It is very clearly Beacon even in the first render.

The second render confirmed it as my top pick.

This view wrecks it for me. You want it to work in the context. This just blocks the view of the state house with an ugly ramp:

 

[atlantaden]

The Embrace is all about what MLK stood for! It's emotional, it's both passive and active, it's the perfect MLK memorial. I love it and I hope it's the winner.

 

[statler]

I'm pretty sure that is going to be the winner. It's the Common so people are going to want a more 'traditional' (i.e. literal) sculpture, plus it seems to require the least amount of landscape change while still being 'iconic'.

 

[Brad Plaid]

These are Greenway-appropriate proposals not Common-appropriate. A smaller version of the hands could work.

 

[Justin7]

I'm pretty sure that is going to be the winner. It's the Common so people are going to want a more 'traditional' (i.e. literal) sculpture, plus it seems to require the least amount of landscape change while still being 'iconic'.

This was my thought as well, though personally I'm having a hard time visualizing what this looks like in its entirety (even with the additional renders) and find the disembodied arms more than a little odd. To me this is more about ART! than about King which isn't ideal for a monument.

 

[Ruairi]

These are Greenway-appropriate proposals not Common-appropriate. A smaller version of the hands could work.

The hands only works because of it's size IMHO. I would prefer if it was a bit more abstract but I like the material, color and size.

 

[ShawnA]

I love the Embrace as well. This is well needed for the Boston Common and for Boston

 

[HenryAlan]

This was my thought as well, though personally I'm having a hard time visualizing what this looks like in its entirety (even with the additional renders) and find the disembodied arms more than a little odd. To me this is more about ART! than about King which isn't ideal for a monument.

That is what stepped me back from embracing, so to speak, that particular proposal. It's quite stunning, and although extremely relevant, I'm not sure it draws people in to it as a memorial. For me, the most evocative memorials involve some level of interpretive programming. Maybe more abstract is better in that regard.

 

[CSTH]

Ugh, unfortunately these are all just bad.

But FWIW, this would make an interesting northern headhouse for the Park St. Red Line platform...(i recognize that's not what is proposed, just looks like one and the location is right....)

 

[dirtywater]

I also really like the Embrace and the Bridge. Unrealistic perhaps, but I think that the two would work really well together.