Public Invited to Participate in Memorial Sculpture Installation

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA - The public is invited to participate in the installation of a memorial sculpture honoring the victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks on Sunday, November 11, beginning at 11:00 a.m. in front of Pattee Library on the Penn State University Park campus. The sculpture will feature approximately 5,000 12 in. x 16 in. waterproof black panels representing the current number of persons listed dead or missing from the September 11 attacks. Community members will be able to assist in tying the panels together and stretching them across the chained, grass area in front of the library. Organizers anticipate the installation will take most of the day, and interested persons may come at any time to participate. The sculpture will remain on display through November 18.

The project was developed by the Student Design Group, a committee of students from across the University that has been meeting weekly since September 11 to come up with a memorial sculpture that could be installed on campus as a community event. Sculpture faculty from the School of Visual Arts, including Sallie McCorkle, Cristin Millett, and Billie Grace Lynn, have advised the group, highlighting the educational process involved in developing such a memorial. Student participants include Jen Hickey, Alexandra Sullivan, Jitesh Malik, Sheila Bearer, Harriet Hacker, Kris Harzinski, Jenny Rogers, Lauren Purdum, Cara Rogers, Jesse Hunting, Ben Campbell, and Peter Daniels.

According to McCorkle, an associate professor and head of the sculpture area in the School of Visual Arts, tying the banners together will be a ritualistic process. Each banner will be installed individually throughout the day in order to mark each life that has been lost. The banners will be attached in a way that allows them to blow in the wind, creating a sea of waving color.

This project has been made possible by the Penn State Office of Physical Plant, the College of Arts and Architecture, and Easy Gardener, Inc., of Waco, Texas, who provided the black panels at a reduced cost. The Student Design Group also raised a portion of the money necessary to purchase the panels.

For more information, contact Sallie McCorkle at 814-865-9471 (office), 814-355-1338 (home), or via e-mail at smm11@psu.edu.

Amy Milgrub Marshall
Writer/Editor
College of Arts and Architecture - Communications Office
The Pennsylvania State University
Credit Union Building
University Park, PA 16802

Phone: (814) 863-2104
Fax: (814) 863-5526
E-mail: alm157@psu.edu