Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial - Design Development

Design Development

On March 25, 2010, the Eisenhower Memorial Commission unanimously selected the preferred design concept created by Frank O. Gehry and the commission and design team completed its first round of meetings with federal review agencies.

Maryland Avenue runs through the site with a vista that focuses on the U.S. Capitol Building.

The setting for the memorial will be framed by giant woven steel tapestries supported by columns 80-feet tall by 11-feet wide. When completed, the columns will be among the largest in the world—even bigger than the interior columns in the National Building Museum. The largest tapestry will extend nearly the entire city-block length of the Department of Education Building. The images on the tapestry depict will the plains of the American Midwest as a landscape of leafless trees. Elements of Eisenhower’s home in Abilene, Kansas will be included, according to the commission.

Gehry’s tapestry design received unanimous concept approval from United States Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) on September 15, 2011, including affirmation that the scale and artistry are appropriate. The Department of Education originally questioned the tapestries. However, following revisions and meetings including the review of tapestry mock-ups, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan wrote that the U.S. Department of Education is “…supportive of the memorial design as it now stands”. The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) also expressed support for the design. The Architect of the Capitol has endorsed Gehry’s design revision, and “applauds the decision, courage, and commitment of time” that the design team has given to the Section 106 Consultation Meeting process, noting that there are no negative impacts on the view and vista of the U.S. Capitol.

The commission's preferred design concept approved in March 2010, which included Commissioner David Eisenhower's approval (Dwight Eisenhower's grandson), represents Eisenhower as president and general through large stone bas reliefs and text. Although final images and quotations are still under consideration, the leading alternative image representing the general is General Eisenhower with 101st Airborne troops prior to the D-Day invasion in June 1944. The leading alternative image representing the president is to be a reproduction of a photo by Yousuf Karsh, titled "“The Elder Statesman”" (1966), featuring President Eisenhower at his Gettysburg farm. Both images are to be photo-realistic in quality. In May 2012, the Gehry firm proposed to use these photograpahs as models for two statues instead of the boyhood statue.

The commission sought preliminary design approval from NCPC in early 2012. The design phase will conclude with the preparation of construction documents, which will be put out for public bidding in mid-2012. The commission said it aims to proceed with groundbreaking in the fall of 2012. However, due to the ongoing controversy, no further movement has been made regarding obtaining the necessary approval from NCPC and CFA. Members of President Eisenhower's family have been openly critical of the design, calling for a completely new direction for the project in a letter written by the former president's son John to Senator Daniel Inouye in October 2012. The estimated cost of the memorial has been reported to be at above $140 million.