The MEMO Blog

Brenda Berkman, a pioneering female firefighter, spent September 11 and the ensuing weeks as a first responder searching for survivors and remains at Ground Zero. After retiring from the FDNY, she turned to art as a way to channel personal and collective trauma, documenting the rebuilding of lower Manhattan in a series of prints. A collection of those prints - "Altered Skyline: Thirty-Six Views of One World Trade Center" - is now on view at the Flaten Art Museum in Minnesota. 

More than 300 dignitaries from around the globe attended a special tribute ceremony this week, organized on behalf of the United Nations by their Office of Counter-Terrorism to remember and honor those killed in the 9/11 attacks. Guests observed a moment of silence and laid wreaths in memory of 9/11 victims and terrorism victims around the globe. 

Henry Leutwyler's photographs of objects from our collection let each remnant and remembrance tell its own piece of the 9/11 narrative. The photos - commissioned by National Geographic in cooperation with the Museum - are on view through the 26th at the Foley Gallery, as part of Leutwyler's "Sacred Dust" exhibit. 

The New York Culture Club gallery at the Oculus hosts a solo exhibition of works by Todd Stone, showcasing the artist's perspective on the rebuilding of lower Manhattan over the course of two decades. Two pieces from Stone's earlier collection "Witness," which documents the attacks and their devastation, are housed in the Museum's permanent collection. 

Thank you to everyone who joined us in remembrance on Saturday. Together, we will #NeverForget911.

Beginning on the day the subway reopened, the painter Marie Roberts spent four months at Ground Zero, live sketching the rescue and recovery efforts. The resulting 200 drawings capture not only the breadth of the disaster, but also the incredible resilience that shone through each day as she walked the changing perimeter. 

The 911 Health Watch will host two days of panel discussions with health professionals, journalists, first responders, and survivors, exploring the impact of toxins at Ground Zero, the Pentagon, and the Shanksville crash site. 

Last week, we welcomed Brett Eagleson (9/11 family member), Ken Williams (former FBI special agent), and Ali Soufan (chairman and CEO, the Soufan Group) for a panel discussion on significant moments in the legal struggle to determine whether the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was directly involved in supporting some of the 9/11 terrorists. 

Caleigh Leiken, a sophomore at Ohio State University, was born in New York on September 11, 2001. Now almost 20 years old, she reflects on the significance of her birthday, the lessons of that fateful day, and the ways that a sense of hope has shaped her life. 

3-D pop artist Charles Fazzino and a roster of iconic New Yorkers were on hand in our atria last week for a special ceremony unveiling "9/11: A Time for Remembrance, Twenty Years Later," which he created specifically for the Museum. The new work celebrates the resilience of the city and its denizens.