World War I Monument 1917-1918

The Great War was the giant prelude to a warlike century unprecedented in the history of humanity. It called for more man-power and resulted in more casualties than ever before imagined. It was a colossal conflict that didn't settle things at all, and only prepared for more to come.

The Monument set against the landscape of a century ago...presents an installation of contradictions. It is an artistic movement of images and materials: granite, stone, military artifact, rubble, rose, dogwood and onion bulb. Symbol of a passing European Age, the arch invites us to peer into the gargantuan human experience of World War I.

Laser-etched photographs are presented under the pensive eyes of President Woodrow Wilson. Tranquil 'family America' is interrupted as a 'young man goes to war' and 'young men come back' wounded. The montage presents grueling scenes of 'trench warfare' and the aerial 'dogfight'. A hero's parade welcomes Doughboys home. 

The World War I Monument shows the pain of war with new weaponry machine gun, flame thrower and gas mask. A dead cavalry horse, a helmet and left-over cannon bear numbing witness to the world-wide tragedy. The massive concrete beams, symbolizing destruction, point unremittingly to World War II.

Hopes for defeating War itself were shattered with America's rejection of the Peace of Paris and Wilson's League of Nations.

SOURCES: 
Interview with Omri Amrany
The American History of World War I
Brig. Gen SlA Marshall USAR (Ret)
Simon & Schuster, Inc. N.Y. 1964