The following formal submission have been made public
Submitter: Sue-Ellen CampbellNew Southern Entrance
the Australian War Memorial was established, according to its own publications as "not a general museum portraying war, much less one glorifying it, but a memorial".
This challenges the very core of the entire redevelopment project, which is proposed, designed and presented as a museum, creating vast additional space for the showcasing of large military objects and weaponry.
The shift of what AWM Director Matt Anderson describes as the most sacred place in Australia, situated as it is at the very symbolic heart of the nation's capital, from a place memorialising the tragic loss of life and terrible physical and psychological damage to so many more lives due to wars, into a war museum depicting and indeed glorifying war, simply cannot be overstated.
It should be very clearly noted that the most affecting memorials around the world - such as the 9/11 Memorial in New York and the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin - are those which are the simplest, providing a space for reflection. The Hall of Memory, Pool of Reflection, and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the current Australian War Memorial provide such spaces - spaces that are rightly loved and respected.
If the NCA approves this proposal, it will forever be responsible for a dramatic and disastrous change in the symbolic character of Australia's capital city, away from one which memorialises the tragedy of war to one which glorifies war, putting a massive weapons showcase on its crucial central axis, in one of its most sacred sites.
In regards to the NCA's responsibility to protect the "site, approach and backdrop" of key national institutions, and to ensure the "integration of natural and urban environments", the proposal to build an array of new walls and buildings, however beautifully designed, cannot help but carve out an new interruption in the existing flow of the natural environment from Mount Ainslie to the Lake. The fly-throughs presented by the architects show that this will be the case.
New Southern Entrance:
In opening the consultation meeting on the New Southern Entrance, NCA Chief Executive Sally Barnes observed that any changes must be in line with the Griffin Plan, which the NCA is guardian of. In that context, it is crucial to note that the Griffins were passionate pacifists. As guardians of the Griffin Plan, the NCA must surely be uncomfortable with the transformation that is clearly taking place at the Australian War Memorial through this development, moving from a memorial towards a museum that glorifies war.
As Barnes observed, the Griffins had envisaged the site that is the War Memorial as a "Place of the people", a democratic space. As a space of commemoration, it serves such a purpose, albeit not the one the Griffin had imagined. However, the shift towards being a place where weapons manufacturers can effectively advertise their wares through sponsorships and displays is a transformation well beyond anything the Griffins would have countenanced.
This challenges the very core of the entire redevelopment project, which is proposed, designed and presented as a museum, creating vast additional space for the showcasing of large military objects and weaponry.
The shift of what AWM Director Matt Anderson describes as the most sacred place in Australia, situated as it is at the very symbolic heart of the nation's capital, from a place memorialising the tragic loss of life and terrible physical and psychological damage to so many more lives due to wars, into a war museum depicting and indeed glorifying war, simply cannot be overstated.
It should be very clearly noted that the most affecting memorials around the world - such as the 9/11 Memorial in New York and the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin - are those which are the simplest, providing a space for reflection. The Hall of Memory, Pool of Reflection, and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the current Australian War Memorial provide such spaces - spaces that are rightly loved and respected.
If the NCA approves this proposal, it will forever be responsible for a dramatic and disastrous change in the symbolic character of Australia's capital city, away from one which memorialises the tragedy of war to one which glorifies war, putting a massive weapons showcase on its crucial central axis, in one of its most sacred sites.
In regards to the NCA's responsibility to protect the "site, approach and backdrop" of key national institutions, and to ensure the "integration of natural and urban environments", the proposal to build an array of new walls and buildings, however beautifully designed, cannot help but carve out an new interruption in the existing flow of the natural environment from Mount Ainslie to the Lake. The fly-throughs presented by the architects show that this will be the case.
New Southern Entrance:
In opening the consultation meeting on the New Southern Entrance, NCA Chief Executive Sally Barnes observed that any changes must be in line with the Griffin Plan, which the NCA is guardian of. In that context, it is crucial to note that the Griffins were passionate pacifists. As guardians of the Griffin Plan, the NCA must surely be uncomfortable with the transformation that is clearly taking place at the Australian War Memorial through this development, moving from a memorial towards a museum that glorifies war.
As Barnes observed, the Griffins had envisaged the site that is the War Memorial as a "Place of the people", a democratic space. As a space of commemoration, it serves such a purpose, albeit not the one the Griffin had imagined. However, the shift towards being a place where weapons manufacturers can effectively advertise their wares through sponsorships and displays is a transformation well beyond anything the Griffins would have countenanced.
Bean Building Extension and Central Energy Plant
the Australian War Memorial was established, according to its own publications as "not a general museum portraying war, much less one glorifying it, but a memorial".
This challenges the very core of the entire redevelopment project, which is proposed, designed and presented as a museum, creating vast additional space for the showcasing of large military objects and weaponry.
The shift of what AWM Director Matt Anderson describes as the most sacred place in Australia, situated as it is at the very symbolic heart of the nation's capital, from a place memorialising the tragic loss of life and terrible physical and psychological damage to so many more lives due to wars, into a war museum depicting and indeed glorifying war, simply cannot be overstated.
It should be very clearly noted that the most affecting memorials around the world - such as the 9/11 Memorial in New York and the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin - are those which are the simplest, providing a space for reflection. The Hall of Memory, Pool of Reflection, and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the current Australian War Memorial provide such spaces - spaces that are rightly loved and respected.
If the NCA approves this proposal, it will forever be responsible for a dramatic and disastrous change in the symbolic character of Australia's capital city, away from one which memorialises the tragedy of war to one which glorifies war, putting a massive weapons showcase on its crucial central axis, in one of its most sacred sites.
In regards to the NCA's responsibility to protect the "site, approach and backdrop" of key national institutions, and to ensure the "integration of natural and urban environments", the proposal to build an array of new walls and buildings, however beautifully designed, cannot help but carve out an new interruption in the existing flow of the natural environment from Mount Ainslie to the Lake. The fly-throughs presented by the architects show that this will be the case.
New Southern Entrance:
In opening the consultation meeting on the New Southern Entrance, NCA Chief Executive Sally Barnes observed that any changes must be in line with the Griffin Plan, which the NCA is guardian of. In that context, it is crucial to note that the Griffins were passionate pacifists. As guardians of the Griffin Plan, the NCA must surely be uncomfortable with the transformation that is clearly taking place at the Australian War Memorial through this development, moving from a memorial towards a museum that glorifies war.
As Barnes observed, the Griffins had envisaged the site that is the War Memorial as a "Place of the people", a democratic space. As a space of commemoration, it serves such a purpose, albeit not the one the Griffin had imagined. However, the shift towards being a place where weapons manufacturers can effectively advertise their wares through sponsorships and displays is a transformation well beyond anything the Griffins would have countenanced.
This challenges the very core of the entire redevelopment project, which is proposed, designed and presented as a museum, creating vast additional space for the showcasing of large military objects and weaponry.
The shift of what AWM Director Matt Anderson describes as the most sacred place in Australia, situated as it is at the very symbolic heart of the nation's capital, from a place memorialising the tragic loss of life and terrible physical and psychological damage to so many more lives due to wars, into a war museum depicting and indeed glorifying war, simply cannot be overstated.
It should be very clearly noted that the most affecting memorials around the world - such as the 9/11 Memorial in New York and the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin - are those which are the simplest, providing a space for reflection. The Hall of Memory, Pool of Reflection, and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the current Australian War Memorial provide such spaces - spaces that are rightly loved and respected.
If the NCA approves this proposal, it will forever be responsible for a dramatic and disastrous change in the symbolic character of Australia's capital city, away from one which memorialises the tragedy of war to one which glorifies war, putting a massive weapons showcase on its crucial central axis, in one of its most sacred sites.
In regards to the NCA's responsibility to protect the "site, approach and backdrop" of key national institutions, and to ensure the "integration of natural and urban environments", the proposal to build an array of new walls and buildings, however beautifully designed, cannot help but carve out an new interruption in the existing flow of the natural environment from Mount Ainslie to the Lake. The fly-throughs presented by the architects show that this will be the case.
New Southern Entrance:
In opening the consultation meeting on the New Southern Entrance, NCA Chief Executive Sally Barnes observed that any changes must be in line with the Griffin Plan, which the NCA is guardian of. In that context, it is crucial to note that the Griffins were passionate pacifists. As guardians of the Griffin Plan, the NCA must surely be uncomfortable with the transformation that is clearly taking place at the Australian War Memorial through this development, moving from a memorial towards a museum that glorifies war.
As Barnes observed, the Griffins had envisaged the site that is the War Memorial as a "Place of the people", a democratic space. As a space of commemoration, it serves such a purpose, albeit not the one the Griffin had imagined. However, the shift towards being a place where weapons manufacturers can effectively advertise their wares through sponsorships and displays is a transformation well beyond anything the Griffins would have countenanced.
Anzac Hall and Glazed Link
The Australian War Memorial was established, according to its own publications as "not a general museum portraying war, much less one glorifying it, but a memorial".
This challenges the very core of the entire redevelopment project, which is proposed, designed and presented as a museum, creating vast additional space for the showcasing of large military objects and weaponry.
The shift of what AWM Director Matt Anderson describes as the most sacred place in Australia, situated as it is at the very symbolic heart of the nation's capital, from a place memorialising the tragic loss of life and terrible physical and psychological damage to so many more lives due to wars, into a war museum depicting and indeed glorifying war, simply cannot be overstated.
It should be very clearly noted that the most affecting memorials around the world - such as the 9/11 Memorial in New York and the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin - are those which are the simplest, providing a space for reflection. The Hall of Memory, Pool of Reflection, and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the current Australian War Memorial provide such spaces - spaces that are rightly loved and respected.
If the NCA approves this proposal, it will forever be responsible for a dramatic and disastrous change in the symbolic character of Australia's capital city, away from one which memorialises the tragedy of war to one which glorifies war, putting a massive weapons showcase on its crucial central axis, in one of its most sacred sites.
In regards to the NCA's responsibility to protect the "site, approach and backdrop" of key national institutions, and to ensure the "integration of natural and urban environments", the proposal to build an array of new walls and buildings, however beautifully designed, cannot help but carve out an new interruption in the existing flow of the natural environment from Mount Ainslie to the Lake. The fly-throughs presented by the architects show that this will be the case.
New Southern Entrance:
In opening the consultation meeting on the New Southern Entrance, NCA Chief Executive Sally Barnes observed that any changes must be in line with the Griffin Plan, which the NCA is guardian of. In that context, it is crucial to note that the Griffins were passionate pacifists. As guardians of the Griffin Plan, the NCA must surely be uncomfortable with the transformation that is clearly taking place at the Australian War Memorial through this development, moving from a memorial towards a museum that glorifies war.
As Barnes observed, the Griffins had envisaged the site that is the War Memorial as a "Place of the people", a democratic space. As a space of commemoration, it serves such a purpose, albeit not the one the Griffin had imagined. However, the shift towards being a place where weapons manufacturers can effectively advertise their wares through sponsorships and displays is a transformation well beyond anything the Griffins would have countenanced.