In history we try to commemorate the great people who have made our countries or the world what it is right now. We build sculptures and objects to remind the current and later generations of the contributions and sacrifices of the people who are long gone but not forgotten. Historians dedicate their studies to such people and museums are build to honor such people's contributions. Often the sculptures remind us of the great things in history, but the less pleasant things should not be far from memory as well. As the saying goes, 'those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it' and it holds a certain amount of truth. Therefore, heroes and villians are commemorated to ensure we learn from their good values and learn from their mistakes. Along with events that affected the lives of the people then and now.
We find different sorts of ways to commemorate the dead, the ones who have gone before us. The more commonly seen ones would be sculptures, sculpted in the image of the people intended, with their legacy etched in stone. We learn to be appreciative of history and its course, creating works of art that reflects the deeds of the people who made our country or world what it is now. Several ways such as sculptures as well as architecture can properly commemorate these people if done properly.
Daniel Libeskind's Jewish Museum is such an effort to commemorate an event and it does it beautifully. The museum greatly represents the part of history it wishes to present. The building was completed in 1999 and opened to public in 2001. The intention of the museum was to remind the people of the fatal years of the Holocaust, Libeskind himself being affected by it, having lost most of his family then. Libeskind called this project 'Between the Lines', saying it is about two lines of thinking, organization and relationship. One being a straight line broken into many fragments while the other is a tortuous line continuing indefinitely. Libeskind, a musician himself, took inspiration from music and considered the museum the final act of Arnold Schoenberg's unfinished opera, Moses und Aron . Walter Benjamin's One Way Street's 60 sections determined the number of sections that comprise the museum's zigzag section. Crossing the zigzag sections is a straight line creating a linear void along the entire museum. The void represents what Libeskind claims was a part of Jewish German history which could not be exhibited, 'humanity reduced to ashes', referring to the Holocaust. The seemingly random lines on the museum are taken from Libeskind's interest in the Holocaust itself. He read the Gedenkbuch, the memorial book which had names of people who were deported from Berlin and killed in concentration camps during the years of the Holocaust.
The museum itself appeared to be a massive sculpture when it was completed, not having been open to public yet. The lines outside give no feeling to the interior space as a building should. As a sculpture, it presents itself beautifully, opening up to interpretations and having people read between the lines as Libeskind intended. As a building it properly tells the story intended, having voids and bridges signifying the sacrifice of so many people during the world war, the murders of the German Jews. As a museum, it completes the tale of the even, filling in blanks in which people interpret from the building itself. It is a successful way of commemorating the dead as it tells their story without a single word, even before you step into the building itself.
However, the monuments and museums in Malaysia do little justice to the ones who have done so much for our country. Daniel Libeskind put in a lot of thought into his design, as well as the fact that he was affected directly, having lost loved ones in the Holocaust. Most monuments in Malaysia do not cause us to look twice, having end up as a landmark or a proposed meeting point. Often we forget that it was because of the sacrifices of the war heroes in the past that we are what we are today, otherwise we might have still been under the colonization of the British, or worse.
As we are not affected directly by such events, we know too little to properly commemorate the ones who have so lovingly sacrificed for the country. Having only writings and word of mouth to go by, we may not be able to properly commemorate the patriots. However, we can help these people remain in the memory of every Malaysian. Simple sculptures do little justice to ones who do so much, therefore a structure that could tell their tale is more effective, one that could cause people to think, not just look. A building or a structure that could properly tell the story of the people who have gone before us, their tales and legacies left behind, their fight towards the liberation of this country from the rule of other countries, not simple sculptures that we drive or walk by everyday without even noticing.
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