Do you remember where you were on 9/11? I personally don’t but 9/11 will always remain as an important event in my memory.
Located in the Bill Brown Playground & Park, which is located on Bedford Ave between Avenue X and Y, just two 2 blocks away from home, is a mural dedicated to the attack on the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11, 2001. The mural painted in red, white, and blue by Rockin’ Ray will inevitably draw your attention. The mural mainly features the American Flag, New York Police Department logo, New York City Fire Department logo, Christian Crosses, Jewish Magen David Stars, inspirational phrases, and most importantly, the names of all those that lost their lives due to the terrorist attack. The mural has been competed on May 1st, 2011, about 10 years after the attack.
Almost every time I pass by the mural, I feel the depth of loss, the magnitude of lives un-lived, and the perspective of how recently in our collective American history, that this event took place. As I look around at one point, surrounded by school children playing, I realize that most of them hadn’t even been born yet and that their naivety was unsullied by the terror, the outrage and the grief that consumed us as a nation on 9/11. The mural undeniably gives the neighborhood a feeling of emptiness, loss, hope, and patriotism. It certainly remains as an essential artwork in our neighborhood.
The painter for the 9/11 Memorial Mural, Rockin’ Ray, created it mainly with spray paint bottles of red, white, and blue. He specifically chose these colors because it gives us the theme of American Nationalism. More specifically, the mural he has several patriotic phrases such as “Land of the Free, Home of the Brave” and “God Bless America!” These phrases impact our perspective of the mural depending on the specific time of the day we see it. More specifically, the phrase “Land of the Free” gives the mural a sense of hope, freedom, and liberty during the morning and midday while “Home of the Brave” gives the mural a theme of courage, braveness, and security during the afternoon and evening. Lastly, “God Bless America” gives the mural a sense of divine intervention in America throughout the entire day.
Obviously, the artist needed much inspiration to create this everlasting mural. I believe that he received this inspiration from the construction of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum which is in lower Manhattan, exactly where the attack took place because he created the mural the same year memorial and museum opened to the public. He created this mural specifically in a park to illustrate to us the importance of recreation. Moreover, the setting of the mural illustrates that in life it’s important to accomplish your life goals and spare time for recreation and fun because life is short and we should make the best out of it.
Link to Photo: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4dZo0gszzDUeW0wWmdMZUIxYm8/view?usp=sharing
One thought on “The 9/11 Memorial Mural of Brooklyn”
Thank you, Isaac, for your beautiful words. As a member of the Brooklyn/Bedford Park 9/11 Memorial Committee, I really appreciate your support. The wall, created by Ray, was actually done when he left the rubble of the Trade Center. He was so devastated and frustrated that he just pulled into the park and started painting. He had never painted before, so he believes the wall was created through the hand of God. A group of us met at the park every month on the 11th and stood around as Ray painted and played music. As the first anniversary neared, we decided to make it official and the Brooklyn/Bedford Park 9/11 Memorial was born. We are there every year on September 11 to remember those we lost on that day, to give support to the families of the victims along with those who are now sick because of that day and to give thanks to our first responders. Come see us next year!