In the autumn of 2021, the Campus & Facility Management (CFM) department was approached by the father of a deceased student. 'We noticed that there was quite a need for a memorial site,' say CFM employees Anouk van der Wal and Marije Rosens. 'Even though it doesn't happen often that a student passes away, what was always missing was a place where people could go, to commemorate or to reflect.'
That place has now been created, on the Carillon Field. Hidden behind metre-high conifers is a concrete sculpture, with shapes of a sun, moon, butterfly and wing. 'It's up to the viewer what kind of meaning you derive from it,' says Rosens. 'Of course, it can be very different for everyone, so the monument had to be open to multiple interpretations.'
For and by students
A project group that included Van der Wal and Rosens started working on the project after the father's call. 'What is special is that it is a work for and by students,' says Van der Wal. 'The design of the monument was a bachelor's assignment by a student of Industrial Design Engineering. She thoroughly researched people's needs, right down to the question of what material it should be made of and what emotions a certain material would evoke.'
After this design, the baton was handed over to Civil Engineering study association ConcepT. 'They made the elements out of concrete, for which the moulds were 3D printed in the DesignLab,' says Van der Wal. 'As such, this monument is something that was conceived and executed at the UT. The only external help came from a company that made engravings in the concrete.'
In peace and quiet
Now the UT has a memorial in memory of all deceased students. Only a sign for interpretation still needs to be added. 'It's good to have one place for this, to avoid fragmentation,' says Rosens, who emphasizes that it is a place for everyone who feels the need to visit the monument, both students and staff. 'That could be for a deceased person, but it could just as well be for a sick person. Or to take a moment for yourself, for reflection or contemplation. This is a place where you can do that in peace and quiet.'
