The Wall

(All content on this page taken from The Vietnam Veteran Memorial Fund's web site @ http://www.vvmf.com)

By the March 31, 1981 design submission deadline, 1,421 entries had been submitted. The entries would be judged by a panel of eight internationally recognized artists and designers, who had been selected by VVMF. On this distinguished panel were Pietro Belluschi, an architect; author Grady Clay; landscape architect Garrett Eckbo; sculptor Richard H. Hunt; Constantino Nivola, a sculptor; James Rosati, another sculptor; Hideo Sasaki, a landscape architect; architect Paul Spreiregen; and architect Harry Weese. None of the panel served in the Vietnam War nor did they have any family members who made the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam.

The designs were displayed for the selection committee at an airport hangar at Andrews Air Force Base, located outside of Washington, D.C., in rows covering more than 35,000 square feet of floor space. Each entry was identified by number only, to preserve the designer’s anonymity. All were examined by each juror. The entries were narrowed down to 232 and finally 39.

On May 1, 1981, the panelists unanimously selected entry number 1026 because they believed it clearly met the spirit and formal requirements of the program. The panelists felt that the design’s open nature would encourage access on all occasions, at all hours, without barriers, and yet shield visitors from city noise and traffic.

Entry number 1026 was designed by a 21-year-old architecture undergraduate at Yale University. That student was Chinese-American Maya Ying Lin (Wiki), who was born in Athens, Ohio in 1959. Her parents had fled from China in 1949 when Mao Tse-Tung took control of the country.

 

Vietnam Women's Memorial

Thousands of women volunteered to go to Vietnam, risking their lives to care for our country's wounded and dying and to use their skills throughout the world in a variety of capacities.
They were virtually unknown until one lone former Army nurse, Diane Carlson Evans, sought to acknowledge their valiant service. Her vision was for the country to learn of and recognize these brave women by placing a statue honoring their service near The Wall and the statue of The Three Servicemen. Sustained by her respect for the women who served, she founded the Vietnam Women's Memorial Project in 1984 and was joined by others to accomplish this rightful tribute.
After a decade's effort and legislation signed by Presidents Reagan and Bush, the beautiful statue, designed by gifted sculptor Glenna Goodacre, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, graces the hallowed ground of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial forever. For the first time in America's history, a memorial that honors women's patriotic service was dedicated in the nation's capital.

 

Three Servicemen Statue

The Three Servicemen statue is the result of the controversy surrounding Maya Ying Lin's design of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Some veterans and their political supporters felt that The Wall was "a black gash of shame" or a "giant tombstone." It was too abstract a design for others who wanted a more heroic, life-like depiction of a soldier.

To meet these concerns, it was decided that a traditional statue would be added as an integral part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The late Frederick Hart, who had won third place in the original competition, was selected to create a suitable work of representational sculpture to be added to the Memorial site. The statue was unveiled in 1984, two years after The Wall's completion.

Comprised of three men carrying infantry weapons, the statue grouping has been called both The Three Soldiers and The Three Servicemen. The men are wearing Vietnam War era uniforms and could be from any branch of the U.S. military at that time. Interpretations of the work vary widely. Some say the troops have the "thousand yard stare" of combat soldiers. Others say the troops are on patrol and begin looking for their own names as they come upon the Memorial.

Hart's goal was to create a sculpture which was a moving evocation of the experience and service of the Vietnam veteran. He described it as follows:

"The portrayal of the figures is consistent with history. They wear the uniform and carry the equipment of war; they are young. The contrast between the innocence of their youth and the weapons of war underscores the poignancy of their sacrifice. There is about them the physical contact and sense of unity that bespeaks the bonds of love and sacrifice that is the nature of men at war. And yet they are each alone. Their strength and their vulnerability are both evident. Their true heroism lies in these bonds of loyalty in the face of their aloneness and their vulnerability."

The lead soldier was modeled after a 21-year-old Marine who was stationed in the Washington, D.C. area in 1983. The soldier carrying the machine gun on his shoulder was modeled after a Cuban-American, and the African-American is a composite of several young men who the sculptor used as models.

The bronze sculpture was placed in a grove of trees near the west entrance to The Wall. Despite the earlier controversy, the statue today fittingly complements The Wall.
Nearby, a flag is flown 24 hours a day. At the base of the flag staff are the seals of the five branches of military service, with the following inscription:

THIS FLAG REPRESENTS THE SERVICE RENDERED TO OUR COUNTRY BY THE VETERANS OF THE VIETNAM WAR. THE FLAG AFFIRMS THE PRINCIPLES OF FREEDOM FOR WHICH THEY FOUGHT AND THEIR PRIDE IN HAVING SERVED UNDER DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES.