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The Gun Violence Memorial Project extends its stay in Chicago, will move to Washington, D.C. in April. 

In September 2019, the Gun Violence Memorial Project opened at the Chicago Cultural Center as part of the 3rd edition of Chicago Architecture Biennial. Titled ...and other such stories, this year’s biennial reflected on the social, geopolitical, and ecological processes that affect our collective past, present, and future. The Gun Violence Memorial Project features four houses built of 700 glass bricks, each house representing the average number of lives lost due to gun violence each week in America. Over 250 families brought objects at collections held across five cities. We sat with each family as they shared their stories, receiving objects donated to honor their loved ones whose lives were taken by gun violence. The remembrance objects were placed within a glass brick, displaying the name, year of birth, and year of death of the person being honored. 250,000 people visited the Chicago Cultural Center in the 4 months that the Biennial was open.

Because of the significance of the Gun Violence Memorial Project, the City of Chicago has requested the memorial stay open for an additional month before it moves to Washington, D.C. in April 2020. If you are interested in recording your story, StoryCorps will still be available until the end of January. While we are no longer accepting objects at the Welcome Center, we will be accepting remembrance objects in the mail. Reach out to participate@massdesigngroup.org for more information. 

We are so grateful to have worked with the
Chicago Architecture Biennial to debut this memorial in Chicago. Thank you to the families that have shared their stories and their loved ones’ artifacts with us, and especially to Pam Bosley and Annette Nance-Holt from Purpose Over Pain for challenging us to create a memorial to their children and the countless other people affected by gun violence across the US. And to our other amazing partners that have made this work possible: Hank Willis Thomas, Everytown for Gun SafetyNewtown Action Alliance, Change the RefLouis D. Brown Peace InstituteHaroula Rose, Caryn Capotosto, and StoryCorps. And thank you to each of the 35 supporters and funders that believed in this work.


Because of your support, we were able to take the first step towards advancing a movement for a national, permanent memorial to gun violence victims. We look forward to advancing this movement with the next installation in D.C. and are excited to see where this next year takes us. 


Event Highlights
September 19 - Opening Day
We hosted an event for our partners and contributors in Chicago to come together for the memorial's opening. Our partners introduced the project’s national vision and impact to date. After the event, family members walked through the memorial and engaged with the houses for the first time. There were tears, but also laughter and joy, as people came together as a community of survivors and experienced the memorial. 
October 26 - Remembrance Object Collection & Community Workshop
We convened with families and partners to engage in meaningful dialogue on the project's call-to-action and aspirations as it moves to Washington, D.C. Those in attendance reflected on how different their stories were, and how the pain of losing a loved one has had the unexpected outcome of bringing them together. 
November 13 - Gather. Remember. Act.
We hosted a public conversation to mark the installation of new remembrance objects and to discuss the role of memorials in influencing our national narrative. The Chicago Civic Symphony opened the event with a special performance of “A Song for Terrell,” from Notes for Peace. Thank you to Arne Duncan, Kim Smith from Crime Lab, Patricia Oliver from Change the Ref, Pam Bosley, and Annette Nance-Holt for their reflections throughout the discussion.  
December 12 - MASS Turns 10 
Pam Bosley and Annette Nance-Holt from Purpose Over Pain joined MASS Design Group at our end of year event celebrating our first decade of work, the publishing of our first monograph, JUSTICE IS BEAUTY, and our first honoree of our Design Hero Award, Karen Conway. It was such an honor to host them both and hear them share their experience with the memorial at the event.
December 19 - Gather. Remember. Act.
Our last event of the year was a concert featuring live music performances from Chicago-based performers, including Wilco's John Stirratt with Lea Tshilds, Wyatt Waddell from Rosebud Allday, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, and Haroula Rose. The Chicago Cultural Center’s theater was filled with beautiful songs and thoughtful reflection. 
Stay tuned for future events around the opening in Washington, D.C.
 
To receive the latest updates about the project, sign up for our newsletter, and to learn more about how to bring the memorial to your state, reach out to us at participate@massdesigngroup.org.
 
Join the movement
  1. Contribute a remembrance object for your loved one.
  2. Donate to support the expansion and continuation of this project.
  3. Listen to and share stories by visiting Moments that Survive or by visiting the memorial at the Chicago Cultural Center.
Visit   Contribute   Donate

In the News
Curbed | How new memorials reckon with gun violence in America
 
Fast Company | A new national memorial to victims of gun violence makes its debut
Chicago Tribune | Best in architecture in 2019: Notre Dame saved, Wright honored, Chicago's Old Post Office revived
The LA Times | Cities around the world are erupting in protest — an architecture biennial examines why
Dezeen | MASS Design Group builds glass memorial for victims of gun violence at Chicago Architecture Biennial
Newsy | 'Living' Memorial Challenges Cultural Narrative Around Gun Violence
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