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The New York City AIDS Memorial's Board of Directors unveiled their latest renderings for the design of the memorial on Wednesday night:
The effort to build the memorial, which started in 2011 as a grass-roots advocacy campaign led by two young men, Christopher Tepper and Paul Kelterborn, will feature an 18-foot steel canopy as the dramatic gateway to the new St. Vincent's Hospital Park at the intersection of West 12th Street and Greenwich Avenue in the West Village neighborhood. The memorial also will feature a central granite fountain, granite benches and a granite paving surface carved with educational and commemorative text. The text will be curated by a team of historians, artists, community members and activists led by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright Tony Kushner.
"The goal of the capital campaign is $4 million, with donations from both the private and public sectors," said Keith Fox, President, NYC AIDS Memorial Board of Directors. "To date we have already received $975,000 in private commitments needed to fund the design and construction of the new memorial."
The private funding has come from generous gifts across the LGBT and AIDS communities, including an important lead gift of $250,000 from the Arcus Foundation, and a $105,000 grant from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
The NYC AIDS Memorial organization, which is responsible for raising funds for the design and construction of the memorial, is also seeking funding to provide for the memorial's ongoing maintenance and public programming. The objective is to utilize the site to teach current and future generations about the history of the AIDS crisis and the ongoing struggle to defeat the disease.
The memorial will be constructed by the Rudin-Ofer Development Team alongside a new park that is part of the redevelopment of the former hospital complex. "We are proud to work with the New York City AIDS Memorial organization to deliver a beautiful new park to the neighborhood and a fitting tribute to the important role St. Vincent's and the local community played in the fight against HIV/AIDS," said Eric Rudin, President of Rudin Management.
The New York City AIDS Memorial's official site is HERE and can be found on Facebook HERE.