The Ma(r)king of memory and the right to remember: design, interpretation and the movement of meaning. An investigation into the role of design in shaping Euro-Western experience and interpretation of the post genocide memoryscapes of Cambodia and Rwanda

Abstract

Bearing witness to tragedy, the aftermath of genocide often resides quite evidently within the landscape. A potent container of memories and representation, the landscape provides both a symbolic role in which to honour the victims and give survivors a place to mourn and remember, but is also often infused with the tensions of post-genocide life.

The memoryscapes of the Cambodian and Rwandan genocides illustrate these contested concerns explicitly. The case study sites investigated in this study - the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and the Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre in Cambodia, and the Kigali Memorial Centre in Rwanda - each express today (consciously or unconsciously) design strategies that engage the Euro-Western visitor. Termed Euro-Western ‘cues to connect’, encountered and existential phenomenological data is analysed in relation to design interpretation and the affective cognition of meaning.

Finally, considered in relation to Berlin’s Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, post genocide memorialisation is analysed in its ability to connect through time and culture - through its ability to transpose interpretations and evolve as the needs of society change.