ANNE FRANK HUMAN RIGHTS MEMORIAL

1. describe what you see, including location (context) and physical space.

i was very suprised when i went to visit the ann frank memorial. i have driven by the huge rock ingraved "anne frank" so many times and thought that was the entire memorial sight. when i stepped aroung the corner and saw the beautiful garden and water feature it literally took my breath away. i felt the most intense emotion at the memorial and was very suprised that i felt so calming considering the space is located between two such busy streets.

2.describe the varying degrees of representation.

at the anne frank memorial site there were several different ways that the designers expressed themselves i saw water, concrete and iron work. there is audio interaction, where a story is told through the turning of a crank. the story continues to be told through written word that is displayed in a beautifully thoughtful manner that leads the viewer from one side of the space to the other. one of the most interesting displays was the marking of floor space. the designer has taken the exact square footage of the living space and scored the concrete so that we can all feel the restriction of annes daily experience. standing inside the boundrys of the concrete i realized that they probably had alot compared to some, however it was still so very little. it was an extremly emotional experience for me.

3.what are visual elements/principles that dominate in the memorial?

water, the beauty of nature, repatition of visual elements in the form of quotation, beautiful life size iron work of anne looking out a window.

4.is this memorial sight specific?

no it is not sight specific. i could not see any specific as to why that sight was chosen. i do think the site works very well for the subject matter. it feels like a very safe little secret garden.

5.who created, designed and funded the memorial?

from what i could see there are many people in the community that have contributed to the memorial and their names are located throughout the installment on different benches and plaques. the designer of the project was kurt karst of idaho falls. the designer greg stone is responsible for the beautiful statue of anne frank.

6.what materials/media were used to create this memorial?

a combination of natural elements like water, stone, and native local plants- with a message of hope in humanity.

7.how does the text/word elements function?

i felt that the text lead me around the memorial. the text was very bold among the nutrual stone and natural environment. the text had a strong emotion message and felt powerful and hopeful

8.reflecting on your answers to the previous questions, what do you think was the intended meaning/function? explain what is communicated.

the legacy that anne frank has left for man kind is very present here. the mission of the idaho human rights education center is to promote respect for human dignity and diversity through education and foster our individual responsibility to work for justice and piece.

9.in your opinion, how successful is this memorial?

i felt so emotional while at the memorial. i have never felt that way at any other memorial. for that reason alone i feel like the designer was successful. the visual aspects of the design is so pleasing, calming and genuine. every part of this memorial was successful to me.