Ark of the Return is a permanent monument at the United Nations in New York City which was engineered, fabricated and installed by our workshop. Incorporating complex, joined architectural panels and carved figurative elements, the memorial is a tribute to the victims of the transatlantic slave trade. Rodney Leon, an American architect of Haitian descent, designed the monument as a vessel to acknowledge the millions of African people transported under extreme conditions on slave ships during the “Middle Passage”. Located on the Visitors Plaza at UN Headquarters in New York City, it reminds visitors, the general public and students of the tragic legacy of slavery, that those who endured its horrors may never be forgotten.
Below are images and video detailing the complicated and multi-disciplined process used to create Ark of the Return.
Creation of Ark of the Return.
Ark of the Return unveiled at the United Nations, March 25, 2015.