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MAYA LIN












I feel I exist on the b o u n d a r i e s .
Somewhere between s c i e n c e a n d a r t , art
and architecture, public and private, east
and west. I am always trying to find a
b a l a n c e between these opposing forces,
f i ndi ng the pl ac e wher e oppos i t es meet.
Architect & artist
A balance between art and architecture.
Body of work includes large-scale site-specific
installations, intimate studio artworks, architectural
works and memorials.
Landscape is the context and the source of inspiration
for Ms. Lin's art.
Merging rational and technological order with notions of
beauty and the transcendental.
Utilizing technological methods to study and visualize
the natural world

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design that bridges the east and west
RAFAEL: Now the founders of MOCA had as one of its
goals to break down the stereotypes of Chinese people,
Chinese culture. Is breaking down stereotypes also one of
the goals in the design for MOCA?

MAYA: Well I think consciously from the very beginning,
obviously a lot of my work has been times deemed Zen
or very Asian in feeling. I sometimes wonder because Im
coming out of certainness that Scandinavian design
shaker, design 50s modernism. If I werent Chinese,
would they have attached those labels? Would they
instead have said youre minimalist? So Im looking at
everything from restaurants, to other museums to things
that have been called Asian in design because I dont
want to become a stereotype in this. In fact, Im acutely
aware of falling into this trap and I really want to explore
that as far as why is this Asian-looking? And maybe I
really dont want to fall into the trap of making something
that looks Asian style. This is a museum that will bridge
Chinatown and Soho. Once again, old and new. Were
going to be stripping it bare to the absolute joints so that
you begin to see the old building itself, the old structure
which probably is 100 years old. On top of that will be
exposing all the stone work in the basement as you come
up in the court yard. So the blending is really about an
inner layer thats older, surrounded by a more modern
skin which will probably announce to the city this is a
museum, this is a new museum that will really take you
through a history, a timeline.


RAFAEL: You said that you grew up, although it was pretty unusual for Chinese
American families, you grew up pretty oblivious to your Chinese American culture. How
come?

MAYA: I think my brother and I were the only Chinese Americans I remember there was
one friend of mine who was half-American, half-Chinese. And there really wasnt a
community. I think when there isnt a community and youre the only person, you look at
every other childs face and you think you look like that. You dont realize youre
different. And I think it was actually, its a college town, Ohio University. And I think in an
academic world Where your color, your race, your sex was not as important as, i think,
what was in your mind. And so I was really happily buffered from that. I think I have
encountered, since that time, certain situations where its bound to happen at times.
The most public, I think was in Washington, but I think even during the Vietnam
Memorial and the fact that I didnt even realize it would be an issue. It took me about 8
months being in Washington til I kind of asked the veterans, is this a problem? They
had been trying to protect me from it, they havent told me about the letters that were
coming in.

RAFAEL: And what did the letters say?

MAYA: Why would you let a gook design this? I mean I remember reporters saying, well
dont you think its ironic the war was an Asian war and youre of Asian descent? And I
just said point blank, well thats irrelevant. It took me 9 months to realize I might see it
that way, but thats not how a lot of people saw.

RAFAEL: You also said that your work exists often exists in the boundary between east
and west. How does that metaphor work?

MAYA: I think this metaphor is perfect for what I do in my work that being Chinese
American, youre of both cultures. And I think this entire building will be on the edge or
in between, or perhaps its going to step in certain areas more than to one world than
the next, but this becomes just an incredible opportunity from an architectural point of
view to explore that borderline situation and I think its really sometimes you feel youre
in between. Other times, you feel youre part of both and I think thats something well
be exploring throughout.


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VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is a
national war memorial in Washington,
D.C. It honors members of the U.S.
armed forces who fought in the Vietnam
War and who died in service or are still
unaccounted for.

Its construction and related issues have
been the source of controversies, some
of which have resulted in additions to the
memorial complex. The memorial
currently consists of three separate parts:
the Three Soldiers statue, the Vietnam
Women's Memorial, and the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial Wall, which is the
best-known part of the memorial.

PRINCIPLES FOR THE
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
The Wall/Memorial is blended in as part
of the landscape instead of asserting its
dominant presence regardless its
environment: one end points at the
Lincoln Memorial, and the other points at
the Washington Monument; together,
they make up a trilogythe self
becoming part of the other or wise versa;
Pay attention to interrelations;
1. Importance of compromise

Where to put an American flag?
Where it is necessary to add some
statues and sculpture pieces to express
veterans feelings;
The wisdom of American politics is to
compromise, not to prevail

2. Political vs. Apolitical approach

Though Maya Lin adopted an apolitical
approach, her design makes a strong
statement regarding whether we should
glorify the war or value lost lives;
This is a consequential claim that is made
of empathy, logos, ethos, and pathos



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considerate, thoughtful
Empathy): why the
chronological order in name
listing makes sense in this
case;
The power of projecting one's
personality into (and so fully
comprehending) the object of
contemplation.

empathy: an encounter
between the self and the other
1. the intellectual identification with
or vicarious experiencing of the
feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of
another.
2. the imaginative ascribing to an
object, as a natural object or work of
art, feelings or attitudes present in
oneself: By means of empathy, a
great painting becomes a mirror of
the self.



Symbolic Design
Lin's conception was to create an opening or a wound in the
earth to symbolize the gravity of the loss of the soldiers. The
design was initially controversial for what was an
unconventional and non-traditional design for a war memorial.
Opponents of the design also voiced objection because of Lin's
Asian heritage. However, the memorial has since become an
important pilgrimage site for relatives and friends of the
American military casualties in Vietnam, and personal tokens
and mementos are left at the wall daily in their memory.

empathy and sympathy
are relationships based on Shared
Emotions & Understanding.
Empathy is understood as the ability
to mutually experience the thoughts,
emotions, and direct experience of
others without them being directly
communicated intentionally.
Sympathy is a feeling of care and
understanding for suffering beings.
Both have similar usage but differ in
their emotional meaning.


Empathy vs. Sympathy

Empathy
The ability to co-experience and relate to
the thoughts, emotions, or experience of
another without them being
communicated directly by the individual
Imagine thoughts of person you feel
sympathetic for.

Sympathy
The ability to understand and to support
the emotional situation or experience of
another being with compassion and
sensitivity
Feel sorry for; Feel pity for; Feel bad for
someone

There is a fine line between sympathy
and a patronizing attitude




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