Client: Arlington County Public Art
Location: Arlington, VA, United States
Completion date: 2023
Project Team
Artist
Nekisha Durrett
Public Art Consultant
Meridith McKinley
Via Partnership
Development Manager
Peta Black
Seneca Group
Project Manager/Principal Planner
Marco Rivero
Arlington County DPR, Park Development Division
DPR Landscape Architect
Jeanette Ankoma-Sey
Arlington County DPR, Park Development Division
Developer Project Manager
Dolores Navia
JBG Smith
Landscape Designer
Sarah Weidner Astheimer
Field Operations
Design Architect
Brian Earle
ZGF Architects
Overview
Queen City, a Black, self-sustaining neighborhood razed by the Federal Government in 1941, is memorialized in a 35-foot-tall brick structure by artist Nekisha Durrett. This permanent public artwork was commissioned for Metropolitan Park in Arlington, Virginia, as part of Amazon’s HQ2 development and marks the presence of a community that existed for over forty years before the land was seized for the construction of the Pentagon.
Durrett invited 17 Black ceramists from across the country to create 903 ceramic teardrop vessels signifying the number of displaced Queen City residents and commemorating their legacy. The exterior of the tower is made of ~5,000 reclaimed bricks, symbolic of the ones formed by Queen City laborers at a former nearby brickyard which made their way into the construction of buildings located across the National Mall, at the Library of Congress, and the foundation for the White House. There is a tile medallion inset in the tower’s floor​ made from clay incorporating soil from the original site and displaying​ the names of Arlington’s original Black enclaves, only three of which exist today. The artwork invites visitors to enter its intimate, quiet space, to reflect on this little-known history, and carry forward the memory of this place and its people.
Goals
Metropolitan Park, designed by Field Operations, is envisioned as a refuge and place for recreation in the heart of the National Landing neighborhood, and serves as the front door to Amazon’s new HQ2. The Metropolitan Park Master Plan called for public art to be integrated into the park design. The goals for public art in Metropolitan Park are to inspire interaction and dialogue and to bring a sense of wonder, human connection, and intimacy to the park.
Process
Metropolitan Park was a joint effort between JBG Smith and Arlington County as part of the Metropolitan Park Redevelopment Project. The Park includes developer-initiated and funded public artwork that was negotiated as part of the optional method or site plan process and created under the auspices of Arlington’s Public Art Program. Durrett was identified for the commission by Via Partnership.
To complete this monumental piece, Durrett assembled a team that included MGAC, Silman Engineering, RZ1, ASC Lighting, and Negative Space. To ensure that the artwork was seamlessly integrated into the park overlook site, the artist’s team worked closely with the entire design and construction team for Metropolitan Park, including Field Operations, ZGF Architects, Seneca Group, and Clark Construction.
In addition, Durrett commissioned 17 Black ceramists from Washington DC, California, Virginia, Maryland, New York, Georgia, Connecticut, Missouri, Florida, Minnesota, and Michigan to create 903 ceramic teardrop vessels that signify the number of displaced individuals from Queen City. Community partners for this project include Arlington Arts, the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington, the Arlington Historical Society, and the Center for Local History at Arlington Public Library.
Additional Information
​​Queen City is one of three artworks in Metropolitan Park, commissioned by JBG Smith for Amazon‘s HQ2. Other artworks include Shhh by Aurora Robson and Untitled Perched Objects by Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle. ​