A second chance for The Tridents...

We're closer to Christmas than September and architecture doesn't usually go hand in hand with eco fabulous jewelry, but in the Alex & Ani Shipment today it contained the piece I had been most excited about receiving ... The Trident Wrap.

I have always found it important to remember September 11th all year long. As Americans, it changed our lives, unknowingly taught us about our strength as a nation and the importance of gaining understanding from lessons no matter how difficult. As well, the men and women giving their lives, to protect the freedoms threatened that day, deserve our appreciation for their constant fight for what makes our country what it is.

As many of us do near the anniversary of September 11th, this year I consumed myself with articles and shows dedicated to that day and what it meant for our country. On the actual date I found myself watching, Engineering Ground Zero, a very interesting look at the museum that would occupy Ground Zero. The construction of the museum was paralleled in thought only by the contrasting construction that put it together. Along with the state of the art demands in and around the working subway system, forward thinking green architecture and a contained mix of solace, history and remembrance, would stand two scarred reminders of what happened that day.

Beneath the wreckage and in spite of what tried to take them down, unbelievably unbowed, and in tact, two, 70 foot columns from the Word Trade Center's North Tower were found. Among the tragic loss in the footprint of what they helped support, they laid horizontal for the first time since 1970. The more that was pulled from the remains, the more it became apparent that these two symbolized much more than the 90 tons of metal that gave them their strength. But it wouldn't be an easy road back. Like the American pride that helped to conceive and motivate the ahead of it's time architecture, the 16 acres that contained the World Trade Center, along with the country, had been battered and scarred and would never be the same.

When the nine story steel columns were originally drawn into the plans for the towers, they were to be the perimeter support system for the buildings that would change lower Manhattan. The innovation required to construct what would be two of the tallest buildings in the world, was matched only by what they would stand for. Initially conceived as an urban renewal project, the towers would exude the power, success and confidence it took to create them; what unfortunately, would make them a tragic target decades later. As the facade began to show, the major source of strength for the towers became somewhat of a controversy.  Not everyone agreed that the external skeleton of trident like columns, bracing nearly 10 million square feet of office space was visually appealing. Many found it to be cold and uninviting. However, the towers became the symbol initially planned, two striking pillars of the most recognizable skyline in the world. Steadfastly holding up their duties until September 11th, 2001.

Forty years after companies started moving into the first completed and northern most tower, the two surviving columns, were commissioned once again.  The "tridents" as they became known, were to serve as one of the most emotional pieces of The National September 11th, Memorial Museum. After a decade of rest The Tridents were placed vertical for the second time in their life, less than 100 feet from where they stood until September 11th, 2001.

Once again, their strength is the support for an unbelievable structure at One World Trade. Again, they cradle the dreams and pride of a country. Only this time, they stand alone and their support is an intangible reminder. 

Among the intense emotion, solemn and inspiring, The Tridents would seem far out of place for anyone without knowledge of what they made it through. They don't look like their surroundings, the difference is blatant. Simple lines and humble structures have replaced the architectural definitions of American success and fearless power that stood before them. The seemingly out of place Tridents wear the scars of a tragedy and are no longer perfectly spaced links in an infinite design aimed at the sky. They have shed their smooth aluminum shell for the internal steal that gave them strength. Together they stand, side by side, blemished and burnt, but straight and unwavering. Stark reminders of what that day destroyed and changed forever.

No longer the bold symbols of brute power and success, The Tridents now tell a story of a different strength. They have returned as the humble proof of The American ability to hold strong to what defines our nation, even in tragedy. And as a reminder of the important responsibility to arm the future with the truths of the past.

Love in Green

the ecofashionista