U.S.S. Arizona Memorial
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Site: Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
Team: Alexander J. Ford, Jack R. Parnell, Nicholas Gervasi
Drawings: Elevation [22x30"]
Collages: Site Plan [22x22"]
Sm. 2016
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The U.S.S. Arizona Memorial appeared published by the University of Melbourne’s journal of architecture, Inflection [Volume 5: Data Streams], as well as the Rhode Island School of Design’s journal of architecture, INTaR [Volume 8: Water as Catalyst].
Just before dawn on December 7th, 1941, 353 Japanese aircraft launched from the decks of Yamamoto’s heavy carriers. The attack on Pearl Harbor began at 7:55am and lasted only 75 minutes. 2,403 Americans were killed. A staggering 48.9% of those who died, perished on the U.S.S. Arizona alone; roughly one-in-two.
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The bombing of the U.S.S. Arizona herself was particularly catastrophic. Eleven minutes after the first blast, at 8:06am, an 800 kilogram bomb struck the front of Turret 2 and ricocheted foward toward the starboard side, puncturing the deck off-center between Turrets 1 and 2. After 7 seconds, a colossal explosion tore the entire battleship in half. She sank 40 feet to the seafloor, disappearing entirely within 9 minutes of the blast. With her went the lives of 1,177 American soldiers. Two theories have since been proposed that explain the blast, both of which deal with the location of the black-powder magazines stockpiled for the Arizona’s armaments in the forward section of the ship; supposedly detonated by the bomb’s unfortunately precise positioning. Three sailors on board the Arizona were awarded Medals of Honor for their conduct during the disaster—the nations highest military honor.
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In 1962 the U.S. Navy hosted an architectural competition, calling for proposals to construct a monument in the harbor, above the site of the wreckage. The design was intended to be an aquatic structure, allowing visitors to ferry out to the site, where the ship’s hull is visible just below the surface of the sea. Alfred Preis won the competition, and his memorial was constructed--it remains today.
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Observing the same rules as the original 1962 competition brief, our proposal is designed as an entry; in opposition to the Preis monument.
Since the day she sank, the wreckage of the U.S.S. Arizona has been leaking oil at a steadily increasing rate into the open water at Pearl Harbor. The day before her demise, on December 6th, the Arizona was fully fueled--holding 1.5 million gallons in preparation for a trip to the mainland, scheduled for the end of the month. While much of this oil fueled the fires and explosions which destroyed the ship, some 500,000 gallons still remained on-board after the attack, and have been leaking from unidentified breaches in the hull interior for 75 years. In 1989, the National Park Service published an extensive archaeological report, which included figures pertaining to the hull corrosion and structural integrity. While the National Park Service has since concluded that the amount of oil streaming into the bay poses no chemical hazard, there remains the fear that a catastrophic collapse of the hull structure might release all of the oil at once, and do significant damage to the Hawaiian coastline.
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The oil streaming into the bay is called the “Tears of the Arizona,” and is easily visible to the eye of an observer--occasionally occurring in such large quantities as to appear even on satellite imaging. And yet, it’s a temporary phenomenon. Soon, the shimmering black scar that drifts from the ship will dry up entirely and exist only as an obscure fixture of the Arizona’s early life-after-death.
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Our proposal takes the form of an articulating gangplank that runs the length of the wrecakge site, operated by a series of reclaimed Pennsylvania class airfract handling cranes. The passageway is clad in porous, white travertine panels which are partially submerged, and over time, permanently stained by oil. The craned armature allows the structure to be slowly repositioned every day, according to the prevailing currents, in order to track a wider range of oil dispersion. In the near future when the oil has dried up entirely, the panels can be stripped and preserved; a permanent registry of the Tears of the Arizona.
ATELIER FORD