"For a great building project I would, like Faust, have sold my soul." --Albert Speer
Responsible critics and historians are naturally reluctant to throw around a term like"fascist" when describing a contemporary work of art. However, a growing number are openly using that term to describe the World War II Memorial slated to be built on the National Mall in Washington. Using that term"is not a moral judgment," explains Judy Scott Feldman, an art and architectural historian who opposes the memorial,"it is an historical observation."
The design, which calls for a sunken granite plaza with 56 stone pillars, and two 43-foot high triumphal arches, suggests the grandiose schemes of Hitler's architect and confidant, Albert Speer. Worse yet, the World War II Memorial will occupy the center of the Mall between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. Positioning such a gross symbol of conquest on one of the nation's most important public spaces shows contempt for the historic character of the Mall, whose openness is itself a monument to the democratic freedom the U.S. veterans of World War II fought for. The memorial's closed design will also restrict pedestrian access to the site of two defining events of the Civil Rights movement-Marian Anderson's concert there after being denied the use of a local commercial hall, and Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous"I Have a Dream" speech.