The Memory Matrix a collaborative project initiated by the MIT Future Heritage Lab. The Memory Matrix is a living monument that explores the possibilities for future heritage creation, employing new fabrication techniques and transcultural collaborative workshops. The Matrix takes form of a giant screen made of border fences carrying over 20,000 small fluorescent Plexiglas elements. These elements are laser cut in the middle with holes in the shape of vanished heritage from Syria, Iraq, Yemen and beyond. Arranged into a larger matrix, these pixels collectively reveal an image of Palmyra's Arch of Triumph. This collaborative making process is a seed for a longer-term mission of the project - to benefit the education of Syrian refugees. As a research project, the project explores how communities threatened by war can document their material and immaterial heritage as indestructible evidence.
Azra Aksamija, Dina El-Zanfaly, Caner Oktem, James Addison, Kristina Eldrenkamp, Maria Roldan, Kristen Wu, Martino Martinez, Raafat Majzoub, Nushelle de Silva, Sofie Belanger, Szabolcs Kiss, Johanna Greenspan-Johnston, Allison James, Seth Cimarron Avecilla, Dietmar Offenhuber, Lillian P.H. Kology, Nasreen Al-Qadi, Cynthia Fang, Ashley Kim, Goldy Landau, Thariq Shihipar, Travis Rich, Abigail Anderson, Katherine Weishaar, Baily Zuniga