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Палм-Спрингс, Калифорния Соединенные Штаты |
Downtoiwn Park | Мемориал СПИДа в Палм-Спрингс |
с 1 декабрь 2025 без имен |
New design revealed for Palm Springs AIDS memorial following 2023 controversy
The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force shared new renderings Thursday of a proposed sculpture that will be installed in Downtown Park, which comes months after the group received criticism for its early design that many compared to a human body part.
The new design, called "The Well of Love" and created by local artist Phillip K. Smith III, who designed the original proposal, incorporates community suggestions that were shared during a series of listening sessions and town hall meetings held earlier this year. According to a press release, attendees hoped the new memorial design would communicate hope, loss, grief, gratitude and love. The memorial will be adjacent to the water feature in Downtown Park, located across the street from the Palm Springs Art Museum.
"The Well of Love" will share three messages: Forever Remembered, Forever Loved and Forever Celebrated, according to the task force's website. The memorial will include a distinct space for remembrance and reflection, defined by two entries and two benches in a 20-foot diameter circle. It will feature three vertical faces, which look similar to mirrors, that each hold an oval “pool of tears” unique to its message. Visitors will be able to see themselves and the surrounding environment collaged across the ripples of each memorial face when they look into it.
The website states: "'Forever Remembered' depicts a single drop of water sending ripples outward, representing the memory of each unique individual lost. 'Forever Loved' depicts multiple drops merging together, representing the caregivers, loved ones, friends, family, medical staff, organizations and local businesses of the community. 'Forever Celebrated' depicts the ripple effects from many drops coming together to create a rippled surface."
The proposed design is 11 feet tall, while the previous design was 9 feet in diameter. Its vertical design is intended to provide the appearance of lifting upward to the sky, according to a press release. At each of the two entries, there will be a bronze QR code, which will take visitors to an online experience to provide deeper engagement with the memorial.
"The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial is a well of love in the desert that provides an emotional life source," Smith said in a statement. "It will be a gathering place for love, in much the same way that Palm Springs was a gathering place for those with HIV/AIDS early in the pandemic. People living with HIV/AIDS came to Palm Springs because they knew that this was a place where they would be cared for and supported. In other words, they knew that they would be loved here. Love can be expressed through a tear — in both sorrow and joy. A tear can be shed for the loss of a loved one. And a tear can be shed for the joyful memory of a loved one."
Community members can see renderings and a description of the physical structure and the accompanying virtual site at presentation.psaidsmemorial.org. The project will be presented to the Palm Springs Public Art Commission at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 3 and to the Palm Springs City Council at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 14. These meetings will be open to the public and members of the community are welcome to comment on the new design.
The original design for the memorial, shared in 2021, featured a large piece of limestone shaped into a circle with several concentric ringed grooves cut into it surrounding a hole in the middle. The back side, which had received the most criticism, was to consist of a ring of protruding forms surrounding the hole. The sculpture was widely shared on social media and criticized, leading Smith to tell the Palm Springs Public Arts Commission in September 2023 that he would be creating a new design.
Local residents were also disappointed that their input was not sought for what they'd like to see from the memorial. As a result, the Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force held five listening sessions and a town hall meeting earlier this year. Themes that came up during those meetings included loss and sadness, as well as hope and the enduring legacy of those who died, along with those who cared for them and those who continue to live with HIV/AIDS because of caregivers' efforts. Attendees also hoped for a memorial that would be physically larger and grander than the initial proposed design and possibly one that would light up, an aspect of many of Smith’s previous works that was not present in the initial design.
"This new Memorial design would not have been possible without the community’s generous sharing of excellent ideas, raw emotions, and intimate memories during our series of Listening Sessions and our Town Hall,” Smith said in a statement. "We hope that the community feels that its voice has been heard and supports the intent of this Memorial, which is to ensure the lives of those lost to HIV/AIDS are never forgotten."
City approval is needed because the sculpture will go on city land and be installed with city funds, although private money is paying for the artwork itself. The task force is hoping a finished statue can be unveiled on a future World AIDS Day, which falls on Dec. 1. Mike Richey, one of the members of the seven-person task force, said in a previous interview that may happen in 2025.
Image © Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force Palm Springs Desert Sun
12 сентябрь 2024
Ema Sasic, Palm Springs
The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force shared new renderings Thursday of a proposed sculpture that will be installed in Downtown Park, which comes months after the group received criticism for its early design that many compared to a human body part.
The new design, called "The Well of Love" and created by local artist Phillip K. Smith III, who designed the original proposal, incorporates community suggestions that were shared during a series of listening sessions and town hall meetings held earlier this year. According to a press release, attendees hoped the new memorial design would communicate hope, loss, grief, gratitude and love. The memorial will be adjacent to the water feature in Downtown Park, located across the street from the Palm Springs Art Museum.
"The Well of Love" will share three messages: Forever Remembered, Forever Loved and Forever Celebrated, according to the task force's website. The memorial will include a distinct space for remembrance and reflection, defined by two entries and two benches in a 20-foot diameter circle. It will feature three vertical faces, which look similar to mirrors, that each hold an oval “pool of tears” unique to its message. Visitors will be able to see themselves and the surrounding environment collaged across the ripples of each memorial face when they look into it.
The website states: "'Forever Remembered' depicts a single drop of water sending ripples outward, representing the memory of each unique individual lost. 'Forever Loved' depicts multiple drops merging together, representing the caregivers, loved ones, friends, family, medical staff, organizations and local businesses of the community. 'Forever Celebrated' depicts the ripple effects from many drops coming together to create a rippled surface."
The proposed design is 11 feet tall, while the previous design was 9 feet in diameter. Its vertical design is intended to provide the appearance of lifting upward to the sky, according to a press release. At each of the two entries, there will be a bronze QR code, which will take visitors to an online experience to provide deeper engagement with the memorial.
"The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial is a well of love in the desert that provides an emotional life source," Smith said in a statement. "It will be a gathering place for love, in much the same way that Palm Springs was a gathering place for those with HIV/AIDS early in the pandemic. People living with HIV/AIDS came to Palm Springs because they knew that this was a place where they would be cared for and supported. In other words, they knew that they would be loved here. Love can be expressed through a tear — in both sorrow and joy. A tear can be shed for the loss of a loved one. And a tear can be shed for the joyful memory of a loved one."
Community members can see renderings and a description of the physical structure and the accompanying virtual site at presentation.psaidsmemorial.org. The project will be presented to the Palm Springs Public Art Commission at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 3 and to the Palm Springs City Council at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 14. These meetings will be open to the public and members of the community are welcome to comment on the new design.
The original design for the memorial, shared in 2021, featured a large piece of limestone shaped into a circle with several concentric ringed grooves cut into it surrounding a hole in the middle. The back side, which had received the most criticism, was to consist of a ring of protruding forms surrounding the hole. The sculpture was widely shared on social media and criticized, leading Smith to tell the Palm Springs Public Arts Commission in September 2023 that he would be creating a new design.
Local residents were also disappointed that their input was not sought for what they'd like to see from the memorial. As a result, the Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force held five listening sessions and a town hall meeting earlier this year. Themes that came up during those meetings included loss and sadness, as well as hope and the enduring legacy of those who died, along with those who cared for them and those who continue to live with HIV/AIDS because of caregivers' efforts. Attendees also hoped for a memorial that would be physically larger and grander than the initial proposed design and possibly one that would light up, an aspect of many of Smith’s previous works that was not present in the initial design.
"This new Memorial design would not have been possible without the community’s generous sharing of excellent ideas, raw emotions, and intimate memories during our series of Listening Sessions and our Town Hall,” Smith said in a statement. "We hope that the community feels that its voice has been heard and supports the intent of this Memorial, which is to ensure the lives of those lost to HIV/AIDS are never forgotten."
City approval is needed because the sculpture will go on city land and be installed with city funds, although private money is paying for the artwork itself. The task force is hoping a finished statue can be unveiled on a future World AIDS Day, which falls on Dec. 1. Mike Richey, one of the members of the seven-person task force, said in a previous interview that may happen in 2025.
Image © Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force Palm Springs Desert Sun
12 сентябрь 2024
Ema Sasic, Palm Springs
