January 24 2011

Maryland 9/11 Memorial Committee Selects Baltimore's Ziger/Snead to Design September 11 Memorial

Following a comprehensive review process, the Maryland 9/11 Memorial Committee today announced that Baltimore architectural firm Ziger/Snead has been selected to lead the design of Maryland’s 9/11 memorial.  The memorial, which will incorporate steel beams from New York’s Twin Towers, is scheduled to be unveiled this year, the 10th anniversary of the tragedy.  Ziger/Snead Architects will lead the design and architecture of the memorial, Mahan Rykiel Associates will design the landscape, Robert Silman Associates will lead structural engineering and Brandston Partnership will design lighting for the monument.

“We are extremely privileged to work with such a talented design team, all of whom take personal pride in remembering the September 11 victims who hailed from our state,” said Randall Griffin, the Maryland 9/11 Memorial Committee Chair. “Naming these design professionals to the project brings us one step closer to making this momentous tribute to those lost in the attacks a reality.”

Six design finalists from Washington, D.C., Maryland, California and New York were interviewed on January 14 after a national request for qualifications was issued. Ziger/Snead (www.zigersnead.com) has previously designed the internationally-acclaimed Brown Center at the Maryland Institute College of Art, the Living Classrooms Foundation on Baltimore’s waterfront, and the Maryland Historical Society’s New Gallery & Addition in Baltimore. Final design approval of the memorial will take place in the spring and construction is expected to last through the summer. The formal dedication will take place on September 11, 2011.

"I am proud that one of our local architectural firms will lead the design process for the Maryland 9/11 Memorial," said Governor O'Malley. "As our nation comes together later this year to honor the victims and heroes of September 11th, we can never forget the tragic events of that day and the brave men and women who called Maryland home. We hope that this Memorial will serve as a place of inspiration, comfort and peace for generations to come."

The Maryland 9/11 Memorial will be located on the plaza of the World Trade Center in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. It will commemorate the extraordinary heroism, commitment, and sacrifice of the 48 Marylanders who lost their lives that day, their families and the 9/11 rescuers.

A delegation of members from the Maryland Commission of Public Art, the Maryland Port Administration, and the Maryland State Arts Council recently selected two steel artifacts. A 22 foot-long steel artifact, consisting of three amalgamated steel beams, will be the centerpiece of the memorial. This artifact and a smaller steel artifact were originally part of the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers. The memorial will be funded by private donations of funds and services and will be administered by the Maryland State Arts Council. More information about the memorial can be found at www.msac.org/md911memorial.

The Maryland State Arts Council, an agency of the Maryland Department of Business & Economic Development, Division of Tourism, Film and the Arts, is dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive. The mission of the council is to encourage and invest in the advancement of the arts for the people of Maryland. For more information about the Maryland State Arts Council, visit the MSAC web site at www.msac.org or call (410) 767-6555 or TTY 1-800-735-2258.

http://www.msac.org/detail.cfm?nid=404