Different Realities
by Carol Lynn Coronios
Title
Different Realities
Artist
Carol Lynn Coronios
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
The juxtaposition of these cold combat troops in full battle gear warily ascending this hill and the carefree tourists in summer dress, appropriate for this 90+ day, highlights the differing realities.
My sister & I walk around this memorial feeling the chill that was Korea. Our father is a USMC Korean veteran who says he hasn't been warm since 1953. Even though he also served in WWII, Pacific theater, we feel that the Korean Memorial is the most haunting memorial in DC.
The main memorial is in the form of a triangle intersecting a circle. Walls: 164 feet (50 m) long, 8 inches (200 mm) thick; more than 100 tons of highly polished "Academy Black" granite from California: more than 2,500 photographic, archival images representing the land, sea and air troops who supported those who fought in the war are sandblasted onto the wall.
Within the walled triangle are 19 stainless steel statues designed by Frank Gaylord,[4] each larger than life-size, between 7 feet 3 inches (2.21 m) and 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m) tall; each weighs nearly 1,000 pounds (500 kg). The figures represent a squad on patrol, drawn from each branch of the armed forces; fourteen of the figures are from the U.S. Army, three are from the Marine Corps, one is a Navy Corpsman, and one is an Air Force Forward Air Observer. They are dressed in full combat gear, dispersed among strips of granite and juniper bushes which represent the rugged terrain of Korea.[5]
When reflected on the wall, there appear to be 38 soldiers, representing the 38th parallel. To the north of the statues is a path, forming one side of the triangle. Behind, to the south, is a 164-foot-long black granite wall, created by Louis Nelson, with photographic images sandblasted into it depicting soldiers, equipment and people involved in the war. This forms the second side of the triangle. The third side of the triangle, facing towards the Lincoln Memorial, is open.
To the north of the statues and path is the United Nations Wall, a low wall listing the 22 members of the United Nations that contributed troops or medical support to the Korean war effort.
The circle contains the Pool of Remembrance, a shallow pool 30 feet (9 m) in diameter lined with black granite and surrounded by a grove of linden trees with benches. The trees are shaped to create a barrel effect, which allows the sun to reflect on the pool.[6] Inscriptions list the numbers killed, wounded, missing in action, and held as prisoners of war, and a nearby plaque in inscribed: "Our nation honors her sons and daughters who answered the call to defend a country they never knew and a people they never met." Additionally, right next to the numbers of American soldiers are those of the United Nations troops in the same categories. In the south side of the memorial, there are three bushes of the Rose of Sharon hibiscus plant, South Korea's national flower.
A further granite wall bears the simple message, inlaid in silver: "Freedom Is Not Free."
Uploaded
May 8th, 2014
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Viewed 288 Times - Last Visitor from Beverly Hills, CA on 03/18/2024 at 10:20 PM
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Comments (3)
Caitlyn Grasso
Wonderful title and image! My grandfather was a pilot who served as a forward air controller in Korea. L
Carol Lynn Coronios replied:
Thank you, Caitlyn. Did he or any of your family make it to the 60th Anniversary of the End of the Korean War in DC last summer? It was very interesting - heartwarming to see how many of the vets did make it. My Pop was commander of a tank battalion.