...the ibb-ijlb association memorial...

Comment
email: ijlbmembers@hotmail.co.uk

There are many varied opinions regarding this memorial; from those who apparently would fight legally and physically to protect it, to those who think something has to be done to improve or remove it as soon as possible.

We asked an expert, a sculptor and designer who writes for a leading arts publication.




Military Memorials are a complex and emotional endeavour, calling for judgments of sentiment and taste, on an aesthetic as well as an anthropological level.

Remembering and honouring the men (and women) who fought and were injured or died for their country, within the confines of a single piece of sculpture, relies on correct use of form, symbolism, scale and location to represent and convey the horror and pride of war.

The most successful Memorials are those which combine elegant, powerful design and proportion, ease of access, and, on the memorial itself, a list of the names of those who died in service.

On all of these considerations, this Memorial fails.




The design and proportion is uninspiring, squat and far from elegant; the combination of the stone used and the modern and timid design relegates this to the mundane, the everyday, the ordinary.

This is not how these men were when they were killed in combat and this is not how their relatives and future generations would want them remembered.

Whoever commissioned and erected this has served their own purpose, but has not served those they are remembering.

The very act of remembering the dead is, here, consigned to unknowable history, as the names of these souls don't actually appear on the memorial. To be sidelined, so insignificant as to not warrant a mention on the very thing representing them, is beyond comprehension.

In my opinion, this memorial is not fit for purpose.



The actual plaque used is so small that it is unreadable from a distance (and one must stand in the mud to read it), and the inconsequential addition of the latin regimental text would have been far more appropriate, if there at all, to be in English so that the majority of any audience can interact and understand it.

When one stands in front of a War memorial, one is absorbing the untold horror, the lives and the pride of these men.

The human-height scale of the piece serves as a visual belittling of the achievements of those honoured, and in a commemorative sense (think of soaring cenotaphs pointed directly to the sky - and Heaven - which portray the direct ascent of the felled souls to God), this squat and heavy memorial stone weighs the spiritual to the ground.



Access to the memorial is limited - the visual impact of it is lessened too by its placing on site - and is demeaned by several factors:

One approaches the front and must stand in the mud to read the plaque on the front or sides. This is a far cry from the 'ascent to heaven' steps and raised plinths of classic War memorials.

One cannot walk all the way around the memorial - as a 3D object it fails at this very basic level.

One's eye is captured and distracted by the railings, car park (and cars) and building in the background. A bird's eye view places this memorial at the very edge of a beautifully cared for public garden but from any gound level viewpoint, it is situated in a car park at the rear of a large building.

The stone used is unsuitable - vulnerable to the elements (as seen in the picture) and already looking worn - it's a porous sandstone material, absorbing and sucking up moisture. This again can be read in a symbolic way - a memorial is a thing to last forever, to be impenetrable, to be strong and sure against the elements - made of marble, granite or bronze to represent both physical and moral strength.



The whole thing is a disappointingly domestic, ugly and poorly conceived memorial to these men who deserve so much more.

With all these failings, I find it difficult to comprehend that this military memorial was designed and erected by a professional with decades of experience as a local authority Town Planning official.


Fiona McCrindle BSc, BA Hons, PG Dip, MA
Director, SA Partnership, Edinburgh.