Picture sunlight falling through cut letters onto the concrete base of the 9/11 Memorial in Arizona at Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza. The memorial follows a circular plan with a flat, inclined metal ring. That ring is inscribed with written statements, each letter cut through the metal so sunlight can project the words onto the concrete base beneath you.
A member of the design team, Eddie Jones, reflected that "The attacks gave America a sense of what the rest of the world is feeling, sometimes on a daily basis" and added, "We're certainly not as innocent as we used to be. Although she had no editorial control over the final result, then-Governor Janet Napolitano endorsed it, calling it "unique, bold, dynamic, educational and unforgettable," and saying, "The thoughts and remarks etched in stone will serve as learning tools for all of us, our children and our children's children. The memorial is supported by some 9/11 families and survivors and was sponsored by the city of Phoenix, the Phoenix firefighters' union, and Bank of America, among many other institutions.
It was built on public land. Each letter cut through the inclined metal ring drops a sliver of sunlight onto the concrete base, and the words creep across it with the sun.