National Martyrs’ Memorial, Dhaka Bangladesh

Syed Mainul Hossain designed the Dhaka Monument in memorial of the Bangladesh Liberation War of independence from Pakistan of 1971. This Brutalist monument was completed in 1982 and contributed to a unique and nationalistic image for the new state. It is located at Savar, about 22 miles outside Dhaka.

Repeated concrete planes move from a horizontal to a vertical position, and the symmetry transitions from wide triangles to very sharp points. The result is a strong uniform gesture toward the sky, further emphasized by the artificial lake in front of it. This project began a list of Modernist projects in Bangladesh with nationalist symbolism and struggle for permanence.

(Abeeeer– flickr/creative commons license)

(Isabelle + Stéphane Gallay– flickr/creative commons license)

(Isabelle + Stéphane Gallay– flickr/creative commons license)

(mizzael– flickr/creative commons license)

(Nasir Khan Saikat– flickr/creative commons license)

(D-Stanley– flickr/creative commons license)

(Isabelle + Stéphane Gallay– flickr/creative commons license)

(featured image by Sahmeditor on wikipedia/public domain))