WASHINGTON — A national memorial to former president and World War II general Dwight D. Eisenhower that still needs millions of dollars to complete would include eight-story-tall columns and metal “tapestries” of photos, according to plans announced Thursday in Washington.
Celebrity architect Frank Gehry designed the $100 million memorial, which also still needs the approval of federal agencies to be completed. A commission overseeing its construction expects it to be finished by 2015.
The general’s grandson David Eisenhower, a member of the commission, called the plans an “amazing design concept” during a news conference with Gehry. Gehry said that historically, tapestries have been used to tell stories, and that’s why he chose to weave the photos. Gehry said the 13 columns, 12 feet in diameter and about 80 feet tall, were needed to hold up the tapestries.
