The day after 9/11/01, the artist had a vision for a memorial to commemorate the horrific events. The “Endurance Memorial” design was finished by December 2001. It combined symbolic elements of the Twin Towers, Pentagon, and Shanksville. When the World Trade Center competition took place in 2003, the artist’s street-level design was expanded to include two below-ground levels.
While another memorial design—Reflecting Absence—was ultimately selected for construction, Mr. Gosswein noted that it lacked a vertical element to commemorate the missing skyscrapers. He proposed including salvaged facade around one tower footprint and a replica facade around the other. The “Save the Facades” design had the support of most of the 9/11 family organizations but was never pursued.
Mr. Gosswein also participated in the Shanksville, PA memorial contest. He opposed efforts to artificially re-landscape the 2,200 acres set aside for the memorial (the ultimate selected design). Rather, Mr. Gosswein proposed a single structure. From the outside, it appeared to be tapered aircraft wings emerging from the countryside with a 70-foot fuselage mimicking the Washington Monument. The memorial had two interior levels. The first room included 40 panels dedicated to the passengers and flight crew. A second room, below, was connected by a long ramp and contained an eternal flame. Visitors could then look up through a light-well to the monument’s fuselage above.
Click here for more information: www.endurancememorial.com; www.SaveTheFacades.com