American Landmarks Initiative
The next great American monument should look like our time.
A proposal for a new generation of American civic landmarks.
Conceived by artist and builder Brandon Amira.
Photo Credit: The Vague RoomAmerica inherited the Washington Monument, the Statue of Liberty and the Gateway Arch.
Each was once a new idea.
WHAT WILL OUR GENERATION LEAVE BEHIND?
Photo Cedit: Sam valadi, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia CommonsDESIGNED TOGETHER
Artist. Architect. Engineer. Builder. At the table from the beginning.
OF OUR TIME
Contemporary materials, fabrication, light and technology should be allowed to shape a civic language for this century.
BUILT TO LAST
Engineering, maintenance, repairability and aging should be considered alongside artistic ambition.
GREAT LANDMARKS ARE BUILT FOR GENERATIONS, NOT MOMENTS.
American Landmarks Initiative
Cities, states and national institutions identify places of cultural, historic or civic significance. Interdisciplinary teams of artists, architects, engineers and builders are invited to imagine landmark works created specifically for those places.
IDENTIFY A PLACE → ASSEMBLE THE TEAM → CREATE TOGETHER → BUILD FOR GENERATIONS
Originality / Place / Engineering / Craftsmanship / Durability / Public Experience / Maintainability
THE IDEA IN PRACTICE
Brandon Amira’s “Liberty Lines,” commissioned by the City of Coral Springs to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary, shows how contemporary form and integrated light can give public art a lasting civic presence.
Creating Liberty Lines reinforced something I already believed: public art becomes stronger when artistic ambition and practical execution are developed together. Form, engineering, fabrication, lighting and the environment cannot be separated once an idea enters public space.
Photo Credit: The Vague Room