纪念馆是一个室外花园空间, 椭圆形, 由一堵低矮的砖墙界定，人们可以坐在上面反思. It was designed to be accessible to McDonogh’s PK to twelfth-grade population and provides an opportunity for people to have real conversations and learn about this period in history.
提升雕塑
位于花园中心的是一个名为“升天”的多层雕塑. 它大约有14英尺高，由A.R.T. 研究企业，艺术铸造和艺术制造公司在兰开斯特，宾夕法尼亚州. It is not only a singular element in the space but something that draws on the environment as well. 它的设计包含了花园和景观中的颜色，并将其反射回来.
- The plinth: the sculpture will be erected on a pedestal that is similar to the platforms on which enslaved people stood during the auctions in the slave market in New Orleans.
- 甘蔗茎:约翰·麦克唐纳在路易斯安那州拥有甘蔗和棉花种植园, 收割甘蔗是一项残酷的工作. The stalks were chosen instead of cotton because of their upward motion and the lyricism of the leaves.
- Sweetgum tree: the Sweetgum tree has a history in enslaved communities—it not only represents an obstacle to freedom but was also used for medicinal purposes. 与她的精神雕塑相似，DeVane在树干和树枝上加入了珠子. 当这棵树被铸成钢的时候，它会留下珠子的印记. The leaves for the sweetgum tree are from a tree on McDonogh’s campus; DeVane made models of five or six leaves for casting which have been welded to the branches.
- Profile portraits: The profiles of a man and a woman near the top of the sculpture represent those who were enslaved. They are in profile mainly because t在这里 aren’t many portraits of enslaved Black people in the early 19th century, 黑色剪纸是当时使用的一种肖像形式. One side of each profile is smooth and the other side is three-dimensional to bring the figures to life. 代表有:
- 大卫·K. 约翰·麦克唐纳送他去拉斐特学院接受教育. He resisted being sent to Liberia and eventually studied ophthalmology with a doctor at Columbia University in New York. 他是美国第一位黑人眼科医生. 他死后，朋友们建立了大卫·K. 哈莱姆的麦克唐纳纪念医院.
- Nancy McDonogh was listed in John McDonogh’s documents as a teacher who taught people how to read. 她先是在种植园教育孩子，后来又在利比里亚教育孩子.
水相星座
水被用作超越和神圣反思的元素. The water is a reference to the waterways of Louisiana and the transatlantic slave trade from which free and enslaved people from four continents emerged.
The wall inside the garden features water cascading over the engraved names of 95 people enslaved on John McDonogh’s three plantations—Allard, McDonoghville, 和圣. 宝石——在他死的时候. The 118 other names are people who were manumitted by McDonogh to the American Colonization Society colony of Liberia. 他们分别于1842年和1859年登上马里波萨号和丽贝卡号.
景观
除了一棵甜桉树, the area will feature a colorful purple plant similar to indigo—a crop from West Africa used for dye that is also planted in the South.
A glass aggregate incorporated in the pathway reflects light and is a reference to sky and water. 雕塑采用了一些抛光钢来反映景观和道路.
Oletha迪瓦恩, 艺术教育专家, 在麦克唐纳学院当了27年的教员，直到2020年退休. 除了和学生一起工作, 她曾担任高中视觉艺术系系主任和塔特尔画廊主任. 专业艺术家, 她的作品曾在世界各地的众多个展和群展中展出, and she has been commissioned to create original artwork by several institutions including The Reginald F. 马里兰州路易斯非裔美国人历史博物馆 & 约翰霍普金斯大学的文化和DC霍姆伍德博物馆. 她曾在MICA的Meyerhoff画廊展出, 华盛顿的科科伦美术馆, 和巴尔的摩艺术博物馆, 她在哪里举办了她的灵魂雕塑个展, 其中一幅最近被购买，并被放置在博物馆的永久收藏中. .jpg)
导演, and writer is the producer of a documentary film about the creation of the memorial to honor the enslaved peoples of John McDonogh. The documentary was premiered following a special dedication of the Memorial during Reunion Weekend 2022.