Tag Archives: Maya Lin

Maya Lin: Eclipsed Time

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Now covered in bird feces, work by Vietnam Memorial artist to be removed from Penn Station - New York Daily News

Maya Lin’s Eclipsed Time used to be found in the heart of  Penn Station between the 2 and 3 express line subway exit; it has recently been removed. Maya Lin created this piece in attempt to have the people of Penn Station think about time as an organic phenomenon rather than something that is mathematical and man-made. She chose to use a representation of an eclipse to portray this as the silver disc travels across the ceiling throughout the day only ever eclipsing at midnight. I believe that this piece was pure in that it tried to draw people away from such a mechanical way of thinking and turn them towards something more harmonious with our lives. I believe that many people have become a slave to clocks and time and Maya Lin’s Eclipsed Time is a beautiful and wonderfully constructed piece of architecture that opposes the systemic use of time and promotes an organic alternative way of thinking about time.

Maya Lin: The Women’s Table

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Edward Tufte forum: Maya Lin, Women's Table at Yale University, and ET

Maya Lin’s The Women’s Table was commissioned in 1989 in order to celebrate the 20th anniversary of coeducation at Yale College and to commemorate women at Yale. Lin wanted to depict both the future addition and previous rejection of female students with this piece. Beginning in the center of the piece, there is a long string of numbers spiraling outwards towards the edge starting with 0 with each number representing the number of women enrolled at the university. The numbers span the years from 1701 to 1992 (the year before the sculpture was completed). This piece is a historic landmark at Yale boldly commemorating women and revealing the issue of gender discrimination at a nationally revered institution.

Maya Lin: Vietnam Veterans Memorial

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Maya Lin's Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Changed How We Process War

Referred to by many as Maya Lin’s most influential and important piece, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one of the most famous and remarkable monuments in the United States. Maya claims was inspired by Yale University’s Memorial Rotunda which honors Yale alumni who sacrificed their lives for our country. Interestingly, she designed for one of her classes and was urged to submit it to the national competition that was going on at the time. She submitted her design and ended up winning, despite the project only getting her a B in her class. The “V” shaped design as well as the monuments “sunken” feel and color is controversial amongst veterans who believe it is neither patriotic nor inspiring enough to honor the fallen soldiers. I don’t agree. I believe the colors and design masterfully represent the concept of death and extends a beautiful piece of architecture that will honor the brave soldiers who gave their life for ours in a way that will exceed many lifetimes. 10/10.

Maya Lin: The Listening Cone

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Headed for Extinction

This project is a part of Maya Lin’s “What is Missing?” series and has a home at the California Academy of Sciences where it beautifully lays in the heart of the campus. This piece is made to resemble a fallen sequoia log and includes a multimedia element as well in order to bring light the issue that is loss of species and deforestation. The multimedia element includes images and sounds of animals and species that are either extinct or endangered and changes every 20 minutes to represent the interval of time which it passes when a species to go extinct. This piece is beautiful both in physical form and in message. I believe it brings light to an issue that has been swept under the rug as of late and will hopefully reignite society’s passion to resolve said issue. I believe it is simplistic yet makes a strong statement that demands attention. Overall 10/10.