Tribute in Light's Uncertain Future

From yesterday evening to dawn this morning, the ethereal September 11-light installation Tribute in Light beamed into the skies from its downtown perch. Designed by artists Julian LaVerdiere and Paul Myoda, architects John Bennett and Gustavo Bonevardi of PROUN Space Studio, architect Richard Nash Gould, and lighting designer Paul Marantz and produced by the Municipal Art Society and Creative Time, the lights were first seen in March 2002 for a month and then became part of the September 11 anniversary fabric, shining from dusk till dawn.

CityRoom reveals that the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation gave money for the installation to run between 2004 and 2008. While there is talk of extending it for another year, MAS vice president Frank Sanchis said, “As we draw to the end of our agreement, I hope New Yorkers realize that unless somebody does something, the ‘Tribute in Light’ is going to end. It’s going to take more than public sentiment. It will take some agency figuring out how to sustain them and where they can go.”

The MAS has been talking to the WTC memorial group, the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, about a permanent location for the tribute as well. While one never knows with city agencies, we're confident that the Tribute of Light will not be going anywhere any time soon - it's a beautiful, elegant way to remember September 11. Here's hoping that a downtown corporation or group of companies can step up to keep it going - for instance, see who helped donate to the March 2002 showing.

Here's a 2002 Slate article by Gustavo Bonevardi, one of the designers, about the project and how it was too early for a memorial. There was a PBS/Thirteen New York Voices program about the project, Tribute. And the criticism about the installation that we can recall has to do with birds get confused by the lights and downtown residents being annoyed by the lights (more an issue when the lights were displayed for a month in 2002). And the Spike Lee film, The 25th Hour, features the Tribute in Light during its opening.

Photograph by TomVu on Flickr

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By Jen Chung in News on September 12, 2007 5:18 PM

Comments [rss]

Reflect

Will be really sad to see them ever go. More inspiring to me to see beams of light (seeming to represent sprits lifting). Pulls people from all over the city and in jersey looking at the same spot contemplating without having to go to ground zero.

shedwa

I look forward to the lights each year. Check out my view of them this year and last year.

hslaton

I absolutely agree about the Towers of Light. Every year around September 11th I'm walking around, and invariably at some point on some evening I look up and there they are, and I remember. It's a really touching tribute, the way the towers reach up to the clouds, even higher than the Twin Towers did before.

MT

The towers of light are beautiful and elegant and work on so many levels. You can see them from everywhere and they are uplifting as they can't help but draw your eyes up to heaven. I hope they stay around permanently. With all the hemming and hawing about appropriate tributes they are by far the most eloquent.

I think the only problem people have with them is the fact that they are so simple. People are never satisfied with simple.

Toby von Meistersinger

It is funny how they sort of complete the skyline, but don't. It is the closest thing we are going to get to what would be a perfect permanent memorial - rebuilding the Twin Towers, but instead we are going to get an uninspired crumpled tower which I think George Elmer wants to be his lasting legacy. Since they don't want to do the right thing with the towers, at least keep the towers of light and do it every day of the year.

guest

Since its simple and elegant, 9-11 tributes have no place for it.

schadenfreudian mensch

Tom Vu took the pix?!? Are we talking about the same '90 infomerical Tom "get off your lazy American ass and go to Vu’s seminars?" Vu real estate charlatan? Man who would've thunk he has a promising career as a photographer.

guest

That's a shame. With all the political bluster and arguments about who should speak at memorial services, where they should be, and how long they should last, the Tribute in Light is really the simplest, and most touching memorial. Hopefully some money can be found to keep it going.

guest

I was going to say the same thing that #2 said. It's the most obvious and logical thought on the matter.

guest

They should incorporate it into the memorial design. They've already got the footprints of the towers left open. Just put the lights around the outlines.