O God, we, who have served in The Royal
Australian Regiment, Consecrate ourselves to
you by giving ourselves, body and spirit to
your service and to the service of our
fellow man. Cleanse from us everything that
could mar this service. Grant that we may
live our lives that at all times we put our
Duty First. Help us to think wisely, to
speak rightly, to resolve bravely, to act
kindly and to live purely. Give us the
courage to defend the cause of justice,
freedom, truth and the right to liberty.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Prayer of the
Royal Australian Regiment
Project
designed by Tonkin Zulaikha Greer
Team ::
Peter Tonkin, Andrew Nimmo, James Grant,
Byron Harford, Miriam Fitzpatrick. Artist:
Ken Unsworth. Photos by Patrick Bingham-Hall
Awards ::
1990 First Prize and Commission 1993 Master
Builders Association Merit Award 1993
Concrete Institute of Australia Merit Award
1993 RAIA Architects Merit Award for
Outstanding Architecture
Project Description::
Designed in collaboration with leading
Australian sculpture Ken Unsworth AM, the
National Memorial to the Australian Vietnam
Forces on Anzac parade, was completed in
October 1992, following an Australia-wide
competition.
Dedicated to "all those who served, suffered
and died", the Vietnam Memorial resolves the
occasionally conflicting needs of public
interpretation of this contentious war on
the one hand, and the more private
commemoration of the war veterans on the
other.
The memorial incorporates text,
representational artwork and sculpture in an
organic unified whole. A surrounding moat of
water defines the solemn contemplative
centre; this domed 'island', linked to Anzac
Parade by a broad ramp, is the focus of the
rotated triangular composition.
The ring of granite stones suspended between
the three 9m high concrete 'stelae' contains
a roll of names of those killed in the war,
and symbolises the journey from earth to
heaven. The focus of the memorial is a 1967
photograph of Australian servicemen at Phouc
Tuy in Vietnam, sandblasted into 200
triangular polished granite slabs, each a
different size. A second stele wall shows a
selection of contemporary quotations,
spelled out in stainless steel letters set
into the concrete. The third wall, behind
the focal monolithic granite 'altar' is
blank.
Constructed of high-quality off-form
concrete, black granite and stainless steel,
the project required sophisticated 3D
modelling for the detailing of its complex
curved surfaces.
|