36 Peace Monuments Dedicated in 2012
Right click any image to enlarge.
P
O
L
E
January 14, 2012 - Peace Pole, East Lake Community Learning Garden, 56-2nd Ave SE, Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Near Hosea Williams & 2nd Avenue. Garden coordinated by Southeastern Horticultural Society with collaboration from East Lake Foundation & others. Four languages on the Pole are the most widely spoken in the world – Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, Arabic & English. Photo shows (left to right): Jennifer McCrary, Melba Potter, Adrian Johnson, Shirley Cleaves, Khari Diop, Lauren Patrus, Andrea Kay Smith, Imam Mansoor Sabree & son Ayub Sabree, Tamara Mosely & Fred Stevens.
January 16, 2012 - World Peace Monument, Soka Bodhi Tree Garden, New Delhi (India). "Commemorating the 50th anniversary of SGI President Daisaku Ikeda's first visit to India [in 1961], some 1,000 Bharat (India) Soka Gakkai members from throughout India unveiled a World Peace Monument. SGI General Director Yoshitaka Oba & SGI Women's Leader Kayoko Asano attended the unveiling festivities on January 16, which included a commemorative meeting at the main auditorium of the Soka Bodhi Tree Garden."
A
I
R
P
O
R
TJanuary 27, 2012 - Bacha Khan International Airport, Peshawar (Pakistan). Date is when Peshwar International Airport was renamed. Note by Damon Lynch, University of Minnesota, February 19, 2016: "The Khudai Khidmatgars of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan [1890-1988] -- also known as Bacha Khan -- are to my mind the greatest practitioners of mass nonviolence in a century & possibly in all recorded human history. Books are written about their courageous heroics, but when it comes to their destruction at the hands of the Pakistani state, it's a struggle to find anything much really, especially among peace research. The fact is, the Khudai Khidmatgars, a huge social movement, were quickly and totally destroyed by Pakistan's power elite. In Peshawar today, try finding a museum in which the famous red shirts are on display. Good luck! Try going on a tour that shows the places in which they undertook their nonviolent demonstrations, were massacred, marched, or held their training camps. You can't. The best you can do is visit Peshawar's airport & a nearby university named after Khan, and if you can manage it gaze at Khan's lonely statue stranded amidst the roar of Peshawar's traffic & pollution." NB: No photo of statue found on-line.
P
A
L
A
C
EJanuary 28, 2012 - Shanthi Mahal / Global Peace Palace, Thumboli, near Alappuzha, Kerala State (India). "Chief minister Oommen Chandy will inaugurate Global Peace Palace, a monument for war heroes and victims of terror attacks built by AKB Kumar, an ex-service man, at Thumboli on January 27. The construction of the monument, a replica of Agra's Taj Mahal, started on January 28, 2008. 'I have spent Rs1.25 crore for constructing this monument dedicated to India's war heroes who sacrificed their lives for the nation,' said 61-year-old Kumar at a press conference here on Friday. Kumar was a chief petty officer in the Indian Navy. He had joined the Navy at the age of 15. During his 18 years of service, he participated in the Indo-Pak war in 1971. 'During that war, I lost some of my friends. It was then that I decided to set up a monument for war heroes. But then I did not have enough money for the purpose. Later, I joined as fire and safety engineer at Kochi Refineries and spent all my savings for constructing this monument. I even had to take a bank loan for completing the structure,' he said. Kumar retired from Kochi Refineries last April. The Global Peace Palace has four minarets representing the Army, Navy, Air Force and other forces. The central portion of the structure is dedicated to the victims of terror attacks. Kumar said people could visit the monument free of cost, and that he had sought government help for its protection." /// Click here for more informtion.
D O V E S 
February 1, 2012? - Peace Doves, opposite Peace Gardens, St. Paul's Parade, Sheffield (England). "Stainless steel sculpture by Sheffield artist Richard Bartle. Features seven life-size doves perched on chimney of Bar Ha!Ha! (now Browns Bar & Brasserie) next to the Peace Gardens. Inspired by Pablo Picasso’s visit to the Second World Peace Congress held in Sheffield in 1950. Pablo Picasso [1881-1973] arrived at Sheffield Midland railway station carrying a bouquet of chrysanthemums & wearing an old raincoat & blue beret. He was welcomed by members of the local communist party, the press & the public, and taken on a tour of the city. He ate a bacon sandwich at Thorpe's cafe in Fargate; had his hair trimmed at Peckitt's barbers, and drew a 'dove of peace' on a napkin in Butler’s Dining Rooms. The Congress was to be a special debate on the Korean War, but the Government at the time refused to allow important speakers into the country, & it was abandoned. Picasso gave a short speech, recalling that he had learnt to paint doves from his father, and ending by saying 'I stand for life against death; I stand for peace against war.' Later whilst returning to London he drew another Dove of Peace on a napkin, which he gave to the bodyguard who had accompanied him around the city. This drawing is now part of Sheffield Galleries & Museums Trust’s collection and is now on permanent display at Weston Park Museum. Richard Bartle has used the original poster [from 1949], designed by Picasso, as a template to create the sculpture, in celebration of the memory of Picasso and the cause of peace that he introduced into an already radically thinking Sheffield..."
P A I N T I N G Early 2012 - Painting of peace & war, Mogadishu (Somalia). By Somali artist Abdullah Abdirahman Abdullah Alif. "A teenage boy - half flesh, half skeleton - stands in the middle of the painting, one hand clutching a dove, the other a rifle. Behind him are two very different futures: verdant fields, juicy melons & pretty buildings versus flames, graves, vultures & fire. 'We made this real simple,' explained Mr. Alif. 'A young boy is the backbone of society, & we want young boys to look at this & understand they have a choice right now, death & destruction or peace.' Mr. Alif, 40, is part of a team of artists who just emerged from years in hiding & have been commissioned, by a Somali nonprofit group, for the respectable wage of $400 a month to make giant paintings promoting peace. Their work will be displayed on busy street corners, the two-dimensional equivalent of a public service advertisement in a society without many TVs. During the Shabab years, Mr. Alif had a price on his head for drawings that were deemed un-Islamic. When he finally fled his neighborhood, looters snatched his file cabinets housing all his artwork. 'Twenty-six thousand drawings,' he said. 'Gone.'"
M
U
S
E
U
MMarch? 2012 - Peace Well, Global Peacebuilding Center (GPC), US Institute of Peace (USIP), 23rd Street & Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC (USA). "Viewed over a railing, the Peace Well presentation appears on a series of six large rear-projected screens, featuring powerful imagery, music, sound effects & projected text. Its purpose is to provide a dynamic introduction to key themes in conflict management & peacebuilding & to USIP’s work around the world [sic]." Right image shows Georgetown Day School students along with USIP Executive Vice President Tara Sonenshine, during a visit on March 12, 2012. /// Apparently the Peace Well can be seen by appointment only & is the only exhibit so far opened in the vast space (left image) which is the otherwise incomplete GPC.
April 4, 2012 - Monumento a Paz / Peace Monument, Luena, Moxico Province (Angola). "The deposition of wreath is part of the commemorations of the 13th anniversary of the conquest of peace [sic], whose main event takes place in Luena. The act was witnessed by the governor of Moxico, Joăo Ernesto dos Santos, members of the Government & of the National Assembly, representatives of various religious denominations, traditional authorities, among others. The peace monument was inaugurated on April 4, 2012, by the Head of State, José Eduardo dos Santos." /// Probably same as monument said to have been dedicated on April 4, 2011 (qv).
April 27-June 15, 2012 - "Peace Wall," southern part of Friedrichstraße, Berlin (Germany). Near Checkpoint Charlie. "Artist Nada Prlja [from Macedonia] has agreed to dismantle her artwork on June 15, 2012. The 'Peace Wall' – 12 meters wide & 5 meters high – crosses both lanes of the road. The artistic work realized in the framework of the 7th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art points at social inequalities in the quarter of Südliche Friedrichstadt as well as at economic & political processes in this urban redevelopment area. The 'Peace Wall' creates the opportunities for the residents to actively take part in the processes in their district. This is how the curators of the 7th Berlin Biennale & the artist see the role of art: to act in society, to engage in the public realm, to assist on-going social processes. Originally, the artwork was planned to be dismantled after the end of the 7th Berlin Biennale on July 1, 2012. An application of urgency to dismantle the wall earlier was rejected by the district council of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg on May 23, 2012. During the last days, the artwork has been violently attacked. Furthermore, the artist has been attacked verbally. That the reactions have been directed against the temporary artwork and the artist in such an unanticipated degree, indicates to the dimension of local disappointment and indignation – appearently the wall has become a surrogate of the very conditions it criticizes...."
May 5, 2012 - War & Women's Human Rights Museum, Mapo-gu , Seoul (South Korea). "Focuses on the history of the Korean “comfort women” who were forced to suffer as a sex slaves for the Japanese military during World War II. " Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek.
F L A M E March 21, 2012 - World Peace Flame (WFP), De Wonne Community, Twente, Overijssel (Netherlands). Click here for other WFP's in Australia, Netherlands, Wales & Tennessee USA). Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek.
B
R
I
D
G
E
March 24, 2012 - Peace Bridge, Bow River, Calgary, Alberta (Canada). 130-meter pedestrian bridge. "Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava brings a sculptural feel to the structure, using the tubular design as a solution to constructional difficulty. The highly technical bridge will have separate lanes for cyclists and walkers, making life a little easier regardless of the type of commute." Click here for a recent update on construction delays. Click here for an even more recent update.
Late March 2012 - "Center & Archives for Peace, Social Action, Public Policy & the Arts," Joseph P. Healey Library (5th Floor), University of Massachusetts Boston (UMB), Columbia Point, Dorchester neighborhood, Boston, Massachusetts (USA). "The Peace Abbey in the center of Sherborn [qv] is for sale, & the owners are ready to accept an offer from anyone willing to pay the asking price of $999,900 to get out from under the debt that’s plagued the institution for years. Over the past five years the property has been put on the market periodically, as financial woes burdened the institution owned by the Life Experience School in Millis; it was founded in 1988 to promote pacifism & social justice & is internationally known for honoring peace activists with their Courage of Conscience Award. But unlike in the past, when the price tag topped $5 million and its owners were looking for a group or individual to buy the property & allow the abbey’s work to continue unhindered, financial reality & the threat of foreclosure means the property will be sold in total or in pieces, with no conditions attached. Abbey founder Lewis M. Randa said last week he expects to move many of the program’s artifacts, such as the peacemakers table, out of Sherborn by the end of the month... UMB librarian Daniel Ortiz-Zapata said his facility will provide space for abbey artifacts, Randa’s personal papers, conscientious objector files, books & other items, which will be archived with a collection from social justice movements. The peacemakers table will be kept on the UMass library’s fifth floor, where students studying peace movements can sit in the same seats that significant historical figures such as Mother Teresa once sat." [As quoted from Boston Globe, March 18, 2012.]
T
R
E
E
S
C
A
R
V
I
N
G
G
A
R
D
E
NMay 2012 - Batavia International Peace Garden, next to Holland Land Office Museum, West Main Street, Batavia, New York (USA). "Sunday [September 11, 2011] was a day of sadness & celebration in Batavia. Americans & a representative of the government of Canada gathered to remember the nearly 3,000 people who died on September 11, 2001. Americans & their Canadian friend also participated in groundbreaking for the Batavia International Peace Garden. Marta Moszczenska, consul general of the Canadian Consulate in Buffalo, said the Peace Garden is a symbol of the 'legacy of peace' between America & Canada. The garden is slated for dedication in 2012." /// Click here for information obtained during a visit to this garden on August 22, 2012.
.jpeg)
C
E
N
T
R
E
June 13, 2012 - Statue of Mahatma Gandhi, Center for Families, YWCA, 310 East 300 South, Salt Lake City (UTAH). "As a lasting symbol of peace & justice, Utah sculptor Dennis Smith unveiled his statue. Boyer Jarvis, a board member of the Gandhi Alliance for Peace, described why Ghandi's image fits so well in the garden of the new justice center: 'His unique role in world history & his commitment ot truth, justice, service, and to encourage nonviolent resolution of conflict among individuals, communities and nations.'" // " Modeled at exactly life-size. Multiple castings are available." // Information courtesy of Deb Sawyer, President, Gandhi Alliance for Peace.
June 2012 - Monumento Fair Play y Jardín por la Paz Mundial / Fair Play Monument & World Peace Garden, Plaza de la Paz, Cancún, Estado de Quintana Roo (México). "Donated by the World Organization for Peace (WOFP) and built in ten days." "As part of the Maya World Cup 2012,... the monument figure soccer ball, made over a period of 15 days, was inaugurated in this city, which it was declared in Geneva, the capital of peace for two years." [Google translation]
June 17, 2012 - Rededication of Peace Monument, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). During the 16th International Conference of the UN International Environment Forum (IEF). "On Saturday 17 June, the city of Rio de Janeiro & the United Nations held a ceremony to rededicate the Peace Monument erected by the Baha'is in a main square in downtown Rio to commemorate the Earth Summit of 1992. The monument contains soil gathered from almost all the countries of the world, and is engraved with the quotation from Baha'u'llah 'The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens.' The Mayor of Rio de Janeiro & the Secretary-General of UNCSD Sha Zukang participated in the ceremony, along with IEF board member Peter Adriance, who was at the original dedication in 1992, representing the Baha'i International Community."
B
E
L
LJuly 4-14, 2012 - Peace Bell, World Choir Games (WCG), Cincinnati, Ohio (USA). "Will be 3 feet in diameter at its base & 34 inches tall. Will be etched with iconic Cincinnati buildings & landmarks that will serve as World Choir Games venues, such as Music Hall & Fountain Square. Workers at Verdin's foundry on Kellogg Avenue will begin casting the bell in October 2011 & likely will finish making it about three months later, Jim Verdin said. Once completed, the bell will be installed in a 10-foot tall framework & weigh about 1,000 pounds." /// "The Peace Bell is rung at the opening & closing ceremonies & is a call for all nations to join together in song & celebration. INTERKULTUR, Germany-based founder & operator of the World Choir Games, initiated the concept for the bell in 2000 when the first Games were held in Linz (Austria). Cincinnati-based Verdin Co. will design & manufacture the bell. 'This is a great fit for us,' President Jim Verdin said. 'We are honored to create a special Peace Bell for what promises to be one of the great events in the history of our city.' Cincinnati was selected as the first US city to host the World Choir Games, which are expected to bring 20,000 participants & tens of thousands of visitors from more than 70 countries to the area." /// Lower image shows bell at the closing ceremony. Where is the bell now?
July 15, 2012 - "Granite Marker, Town of Berlin, Marathon County, Wisconsin (USA). "Commemorates Pomeranian immigrants who settled in the area. Organized by the Pommerscher Verein Central Wisconsin, a heritage group that studies the history, culture & Low German (or Platt) language known to their ancestors, the celebration included singing, dancing, speeches & even a release of pigeons as the monument was unveiled. The songs included a version of "On Wisconsin" and "You Are My Sunshine" in Platt, as well as "Das Pommernlied," which was written in 1850. The group is believed to be the first to translate the Wisconsin state song into a dialect language."
P
L
A
Q
U
EJuly 27, 2012 - Plaque commemorating Count Richard Graf Coudenhove-Kalergi, Heiligen Kreuzer-Hof, Vienna (Austria). Google translation: "In this house, in the Pralatur Heiligenkreuzerhof lived the founder of the PanEuropean Union and spiritual father of the European agreement, RICHARD GRAF COUDENHOVE-KALERGI. From here, he fled in the night of 11 to 12 March 1938 the occupation forces of Nazi Germany. Austrian Pan European Association. To mark the 40 anniversary of his death on 27 July 2012." /// "Coudenhove-Kalergi, born November 16, 1894, in Tokyo (Japan); died July 27, 1972 in Schruns (Austria), was a Japanese Austrian writer, politician & founder of the Paneuropa movement." Information courtesy of Peter van den Dungen.
W
A
L
L
August 2012 - "Peace Monuments of War Material," Arboga (Sweden). "An international sculpture symposium with the aim of creating peace monuments from scrapped military equipment. Started with an art exhibition in Beijing (China) in December 2011 of sketches that the artists made for their sculptures. Then with a symposium in August 2012 when all these internationally active artists gathered to make peace monuments in the form of sculptures. Our plan is that these peace monuments shall form a permanent sculpture park (Skulpturparken Arboga) in some beautiful place close by. Artist Richard Brixel is the initiator of the project. The association MEKENS VÄNNER of Arboga owns and runs this project with Hĺkan Sterner Eventkonsult as our project leader. Here are the artists (images show the works in red): 1. Zhu Ying—China "Flower in Arboga" 2. Devin Laurence Field-USA "Arch of Arboga—Arbogaporten" 3. Li Jinze-China "Shake hands for peace" 4. Insa Winkler-Tyskland "From heart to heart-green grotta" 5. Lasse Nilsson—Sverige "The Savior" 6. Mats Lodén-Sverige "Peaceful character" 7. Mats Lodén-Sverige "Ikaros" 8. Yang Junlan-China "We are family" 9. Wen Chao-China "War is over" 10. Xu Zhenglong-China "Harmony and unity—from missile to pen" 11. Dong Shubing-China "Wind and dust" 12. Jenny Grönvall-Sverige "Make food not war" 13. Florin Strejac-Rumänien "The butterfly projekt" 14. Anthony Heywood-UK "Send the weapons to the moon" 15. Linda Verkaaik-Holland "The wave—the flying dutchman" 16. Dong Shubing-China "Let alla weapons be sealed up" 17. Wei Xiaming-China "A letter of peace"
W
A
L
LAugust 22, 2012 - Wall for Peace 2011, Concourse A/B, Washington Dulles International Airport, Chantilly, Virginia (USA). By Anil Revri. "7 feet long, 6 ˝ feet high, free-standing rectangular sculpture that features a four-sided LED screen that displays English translations of scriptures related to peace from Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Sikhism. Rays of light emanating from the unit are projected onto the viewers as they walk around the work... On display until March 2013." Still there as of August 2014. Information courtesy of Sharron King.
August 29, 2012 - Memorial to Munich Massacre, Nazareth Illit (Israel). Commomorates massacre of 11 Israeli atheletes at the Munich Olympic Games on September 5, 1972. Photo by Dr. Avishai Teicher.
September 9, 2012 - Cairn to Conscientious Objectors, 10th Avenue NE, Altona (Canada). "A memorial to the many thousands of people who chose alternative service instead of military service during wartime. 'This community was founded by people who came here [from Ukraine] because they were conscientious objectors,' said Bernie Loeppky, a spokesman for the local group that spearheaded the project. 'A marker like this is much more than a memory, it is also a teaching tool. From this marker we expect people will ask questions as to why people chose to be a CO.' // In Canada, conscientious objectors were often assigned to an alternative civilian service during the war as a substitute for conscription or military service. Loeppky says those who chose alternative service made contributions that have benefited the country. // A fairly large crowd turned out for the ceremony on Sunday afternoon. The monument has a bronze plaque attached to a stone that stands about 8 feet tall. Loeppky says conscientious objectors date back to the early Church. // Loeppky says it has been a long process in getting to this point. 'Originally, many of the COs that were part of this did not want to be recognized. However, after some time, we managed to generate some enthusiasm and interest. We did one in Winkler [qv, 40 km West of Altona] earlier, and other memorials are being planned in locations throughout Canada.'" /// Information courtesy of Conrad Stoesz, Archivist, Mennonite Heritage Centre, Winnipeg, 13Nov2013.
September 22, 2012 - Peace Crane, USS Arizona Memorial, World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (USA). "The paper crane, one of five kept by Sasaki's brother, Masahiro Sasaki, 71, will be put on permanent exhibit in about three months at the visitor center of the USS Arizona, which was sunk by Japan's 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. The Sasaki family donated it in hopes that Japan & the US can overcome resentment & animosity over the war & strengthen their relationship. The exhibit came about with the assistance of Clifton Truman Daniel, the eldest grandson of US. President Harry Truman, who ordered the atomic bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki in 1945."
September 24, 2012 - Peace Monument, Urban Campus, Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC), Des Moines, Iowa (USA). "The dedication of a 10-foot-high, 14.5-ton tribute to peace attracted about 125 people to the southernmost point of the DMACC Urban Campus Monday. The sculpture was carved out of Indiana limestone by Huxley sculptor Ron Dinsdale. It took him about six months to complete the work, which was installed on the site this summer. The project is the work of Chet Guinn, founder of the Iowa Peace Monument Committee, which is working to raise $40,000 to pay for it. Guinn’s dream is that eventually a series of sculptures dedicated to peace will be installed on the corridor that runs alongside Interstate Highway 235 through Des Moines."
October 8, 2012 - César E. Chávez National Monument, Keene, California (USA). "The home of Nuestra Seńora Reina de la Paz (also known as La Paz), the headquarters of the iconic United Farm Workers. The La Paz property was also the home of labor leader César Chávez & his family & is the location of his grave site. The parts of La Paz to become part of the monument include a visitors’ center with César Chávez’s office, the UFW legal aid offices, the home Chávez shared with his wife, the Chávez Memorial Garden with the grave site, & some additional buildings on the property in Keene."
T
R
A
I
L
S
November 1, 2012 - Plaque Jules-Guillaume Fick et Guillaume Henri Dufour, 14 rue Etienne Dumont, Geneva (Switzerland). Celebrating "Les 150 ans de la publication d'''Un Souvenir de Solferino [Italy]'" by Henri Dunant [1828-1910]. At the site of the Jules-Guillaume Fick printshop which published the first edition of "Un Souvenir de Solferino" in 1862. Guillaume Henri Dufour [1787-1875] lived 20 years in the same house. Dunant & Dufour were both founders of the Red Cross in 1863. Information courtesy of Peter van den Dungen 06Nov2012. Images courtesy of Trond Heide Henningsen 18Jul2013.
Please email your comments & questions to geovisual @ comcast.net. Thank you.