Virtu: Maya Lin

virtu \ vuhr-TOO; vir- \ , noun;
1. love of or taste for fine objects of art.
2. Productions of art (especially fine antiques).
3. Artistic quality.


I want to make this a weekly feature--in which I will showcase a specific designer/artist/architect that has been influential to me in some way. I love discovering new artists, so if I can introduce just one person to something that they never knew about before, that resonates with them, that's enough for me.

Whenever it comes to anything design related--be it graphic, interior, fashion, or anything else rooted in the visual arts, I have always been drawn to minimalism: to an artists ability to make one simple decision that gives life and character to the design. One of my favorite Architects is by far, Maya Lin. Possibly because she precariously straddles the line separating fine art and architecture, maybe because I can identify with her because of her race. But more than anything, her aesthetic speaks strongly to mine.



She is involved with a lot of landscape architecture, which is what I want to focus on this week. Her first and most widely recognized work is the Vietnam War Memorial in DC. At the time, the design was incredibly controversial. I could write a whole post about the project, honestly. But that's not what this is about. If you want to learn more, there's a documentary called "Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision" that I know is available on Netflix. In the memorial, she cut into the earth instead of building. She has a deep fascination with natural lines and shaping the ground.



Her website has a lot more photos of her work, along with brief descriptions of each project.