Project proposal for the memorial places arrangement
RE:UKRAINE MEMORIES
The main goal of the RE:Ukraine Memories project is to form a systematic approach to memorializing objects that have become a cast of Russian aggression and to implement responsible memory preservation ideas.
The destroyed bridge in Irpin memorial, 'Open Fracture', has become the first memorial concept we presented to Volodymyr Zelensky and The Office of the President of Ukraine.
Open Fracture is a concept for a memorial site around the destroyed bridge near the city of Irpin. Our team developed this project voluntarily, on our own initiative, in April 2022.
On February 25 2022, the second day of Russia's full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian army blew up several bridges near Kyiv to prevent enemy attack on the capital. It was from this place, with the help of our defenders, that people evacuated to Kyiv. Photos of Ukrainians hiding under the destroyed bridge have been published by media around the globe. The world remembers the story of Irpin thanks to the footage of the bridge’s ‘fracture’. Our goal is to immortalize this memory in a responsible way.
IN DEVELOPING THE. PROJECT, WE WERE GUIDED BY TWO PRINCIPLES:
1. Preserve the ‘open fracture’
Our team proposes to keep the ‘open fracture’ of the bridge, turning pressure points into areas of strength. We want to create a place where everyone can honor the heroes and victims of the war and, at the same time, protect those who have painful memories from the time of evacuation from retraumatizing them.
It is impossible to understand what people experienced during their evacuation under enemy fire. However, one can try their place and reflect on these events.
2. Don’t create new architectural images
We consider it appropriate to preserve this place in its almost original form, refraining from creating any new architectural images. Aesthetics and creativity are inappropriate here. The main goal is to reproduce the function.
The explosion of the bridge and related events determined our choice of materials. We do not wish to add anything more. Concrete is the destroyed bridge piers, gravel – stone funnels from shells, corten steel – the cars scorched under fire.
The visual image of this place of memory is based on the principles of functional minimalism. Simple, geometrically defined forms do not steal your attention but, on the contrary, direct you to the main semantic points.
