Obj. ID: 50466
  Memorials  National Holocaust Memorial in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2016

Memorial Name

The National Monument to the Memory of the Victims of the Jewish Holocaust
[Monumento Nacional de la memoria de Las Víctimas del Holocausto Judío]

Description

The memorial, located in the Plaza de la Shoá (Shoah Plaza), is comprised of a wall of 114 pre-cast concrete parallelepipeds, 39 meters long and 4 meters high. The blocks are stacked in a line in front of a row of trees. The wall appears to be embedded in the railway embankment in from of which it stands. The monument does not command a central position but rather serves as a backdrop to the Plaza de la Shoá (former Paseo de la Infanta).

The wall faces the grassy plaza, where set in the center is a low concrete pedestal on which is a tilted travertine slab on which is a bronze plaque, announcing that this is the Monumento Nacional de la memoria de Las Víctimas del Holocausto Judío (National Monument of the Memory of the Victims of the Jewish Holocaust). Closer to the entrance from Av. del Libertador, is a sign announcing the "Plaza de la Shoah," and a low-mounted map of the plaza and the adjacent park.

The number 114 represents the total number of victims of the attack on the Israeli embassy in Argentina in 1992 and of the attack on the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA) in 1994. The blocks are stacked unevenly so that some protrude more than others. In a very general way, the arrangement recalls the large stone blocks in Jerusalem's Kotel (the western wall of the Temple base).

The concrete blocks of the wall are imprinted with everyday objects on their faces, including shoes, toys, tools, a fork, eyeglasses, a kitchen apron, a girl's dress, suspenders, a radio, a camcorder, a slide projector, roller skates. headphones, computer keyboards, a camera, an umbrella, books, a scooter, musical instruments, dishes, appliances, a cane, a toy car racetrack, a skateboard, pacifiers, etc. These were made by creating silicone rubber molds of the objects and embedding these in the concrete.

The only historical aspect of the monument is provided by three inscribed black cubes: one gives the name to the monument, another has a Magen David and the third has the year of creation inscribed: "2014", and "5775" (according to the Jewish calendar). The dates of the Holocaust are not provided. Plaques at the end of the wall give the name of the monument, and list government officials, architects, workers, and donors.
Nothing is explained on the monument. There is no history, no facts, no dates, and hardly any reference to the victims or the circumstances of their deaths. There are no names or information about the victims. The inclusion of casts of common 21st century objects that would have been unknown at the time of the Holocaust is confusing.

Several signs surround the plaza, naming it, the memorial, and asking visitors to be respectful. There is night illumination of the monument from the ground level.

Inscriptions

Entrance Sign (Spanish)

Plaza de la Shoá

Translation: Shoah Square

Sign next to the monument (Spanish)

Este es un espacio de memoria y
reflexión por las víctimas del Holocausto.

Cuidémoslo entre todos. 

Translation: This is a space for memory and reflection for the victims of the Holocaust. / Let's take care of it.

Plaque on the Memorial (Spanish)

Monumento Nacional
a la memoria
de las Victimas
del Holocausto Judío

Translation: National Monument to the memory of the Victims of the Jewish Holocaust.

Commission plaque (Spanish)

Presidencia de la Nación
Dra. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner

Vicepresidencia de la Nación
Arrigo Boudou

Ministerio de Cultura de la Nación 
Teresa Parodi

Secretario de Gestión Cultural 
Jorge Espiñeira

Translation: President of the Nation  Dr. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner / Vice President of the Nation  Arrigo Boudou / Ministry of Culture of the Nation  Teresa Parodi / Secretary of Cultural Management  Jorge Espiñeira

Creators and Donors Plaque (Spanish)

Realizadores: Gustavo Nielsen, Sebastián Marsiglia, arquitectos. 

Equipo: [list of names]

Donantes: [list of names]

Translation: Directors: Gustavo Nielsen, Sebastián Marsiglia, architects. / Team: [list of names] / Donors [list of names]

Plaque at the entrance of the plaza (Spanish)

Monumento Nacional
de la memoria
de Las Víctimas
del Holocausto Judío

Translation: National Monument of the Memory of the Victims of the Jewish Holocaust

Commissioned by

The government of Argentina, with private donations