Thoughts on Memorials - Sam Joseph

At this point in the course, I can't help but think about how we interact with memorials and shrines.
There is something original and nevertheless derivative in human-memorial/shrine interaction. Memorial/shrine spaces produce a profound interplay between physical and non-physical ways of human interfacing. For effective memorial/shrine spaces, every action has some predetermined and replicable haptic experience meant to spur emotion and a connectivity to the space. Texts, ritual performances, and architectural cues all compose how we interact with spaces.
It stands out to me that no memorial or shrine space is accidental. They are charged with forethought and are meant to be evocative through immediately understandable means of non-verbal communication, and can be enhanced through verbal communication. It's the multivalent cross communication that makes these spaces so human. They speak to something deeply ingrained throughout humanity and transcend cultural divides.