CAMPO DI PIANTO

World War One Memorial Competition - Pershing Park This monument adjacent to the National Mall is envisioned as a reconfiguration of an existing World War I memorial park in the heart of Washington DC. The existing park is redeveloped as a funerary complex and cenotaph guided by the scriptural Psalm credited to King David of Judah "I lift my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come?" Psalms 118:1 Informed by the belief that today is a fragment of eternity that was never promised, the complex's itinerary is a procession through, around, beneath, and upon a mournful Architecture of recollection. Rendered as a Campo di Pianto (Field of Weeping) it is a hardscaped piazza punctuated by shards of light and contemplative enclosures. The design preserves the fabric of the encircling park while establishing a pensive and somber precinct of reflection for the city's residents and visitors .