21 people

This year, the town of Tahitótfalu invited applications for a Holocaust memorial. Two young architect students from Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design submitted their concept for this competition. On the occasion of Holocaust Memorial Day in Hungary, 2B Gallery presents the work of Imre Szűcs and Domonkos Csirmaz.

„As we see it, people often think of a memorial as something which is about personal mourning and silence, and as a place where the only proper thing to do is stand still and be quiet. We however believe that commemoration should be a public action, which treats the events of the past collectively, and which is destined to break the silence surrounding the tragedies.

Our plan is a look-out tower, made of wood railway sleepers, which is built with the help of local people. As the superpositioning and fixing of these sleepers requires „only” the assistance of quick to act, enthusiastic people, the residents of the village can be a part of the creation process from the start. With this gesture, we help them have personal feelings towards their memorial, and with the event of the construction, we produce the first opportunity for treating the memory of the past as a community.

The building consist of 21 railway ties, symbolizing the 21 people transported to the ghetto in Szentendre during the terrible events of 1944. On each tie, names and data of the dragged away locals can be found.

Our look-out tower does not rise above the houses, and it is not intented to be a place from where people should have a distant look. It’s not meant to isolate the visitors from their surroundings, since this environment connects them to the tragic events. Our building is designed to create a slight elevation from everyday life, and it should invite people to climb or sit on it, and talk about it, and this way eventually stop the muteness connected to the act of commemoration.”