9/11 Memorial

Client: Buchanan Group, Indiana

Completed: 2021

Location: Oakland Memorial Gardens, Fishers, Indiana, United States

Artwork Budget: $50,000

President and C.O.O. Buchanan Group: Tony Lloyd

Fabricator and Installer: bo-mar Industries Inc.

The installation is located in the lobby clerestory, and features two thousand nine hundred and seventy-seven engraved dog tags on chains suspended from number-shaped steel armatures that create the composition. Each tag is custom engraved with the name and location of each person who lost their life during the attack. The installation is mounted at an angle within the square clerestory so each tag is clearly visible from the entrance of the office foyer. Windows surround the composition and illuminate the chains and tags by day. A stainless-steel plate, mounted on a wall nearby, describes the artwork and features words of dedication written by the owner

The project was commissioned to mark the 20^th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, and the client wanted to use dog tags to memorialize and honor the individuals, their families and loved ones, as well as show the enormity of this collective loss. The project team also wanted to highlight individuals from Indiana in a way that complimented the overall goals of the project.

The artist designed number shaped steel armatures to not only suspend the chains and tags, but also ensure the “9/11” described by the grouped elements would be clearly recognizable. Perforated metal sheets were held in place by the armature, and the fabricators carefully threaded each chain through the perforations. The chains’ spacing and the dimensions of the supporting structure were carefully calculated by the artist to guarantee each tag is visible and to visually balance the composition in relation to the architectural space. In order to especially recognize Indiana natives and their families, nine of the tags, which hold the names of Hoosiers who perished on that day, include blue steel Indiana-shaped medallions hanging from them, which the fabricator custom-made.

Buchanan Group 9/11 Memorial Dedication