David Adjaye to Design Barbados Heritage District in New Project Announcement

Barbados is set to host a significant global research institute, a museum, and a memorial dedicated to the history and impact of slavery and forced migration in the Western hemisphere. This groundbreaking project will be designed by renowned architect David Adjaye and located in Newton Plantation, near the country's capital. The first phase of the project, the Newton Enslaved Burial Ground Memorial, will serve as a place of remembrance for enslaved ancestors and provide the intellectual, emotional, and spiritual framework for the scholarly research and public programs that the future centre will generate. The groundbreaking is scheduled for November 30, 2022, on the first anniversary of Barbados’ status as a Parliamentary Republic.

The Newton Enslaved Burial Ground Memorial is situated adjacent to the Newton Burial Ground, where the remains of 570 West African slaves were uncovered through a LIDAR study. The monument will transform this site of tragedy and trauma into a charged place of commemoration, remembrance, and connection. The memorial will be the first research institute and resource centre of global stature based in the Caribbean dedicated to exploring the history and enduring impact of slavery and forced migration on the world.

The memorial's design draws upon the technique and philosophy of traditional African tombs, prayer sites, and pyramids. It is conceived as a space that contemporaneously honours the dead, edifies the living, and manifests a new diasporic future for a Black civilization that is both of the African continent and distinct from it. The design aligns the sacred landscape with notions of renewal and rebirth, addressing a traumatic past while celebrating the potential for new futures.

Visitors will begin their journey within a monolithic dome pavilion where historical information about the burial ground and slave trade will be presented. The dome encapsulates three earthly elements and is composed of red laterite earth punctuated by an oculus that frames views of the cosmos and an aquifer that connects to the water underneath the site. A field of sugarcane flanks the southern entry point to the memorial, and a gently ascending ramp floats above the earth and guides visitors towards the memorial structure.

The memorial is composed predominantly of red mineral earth and timber, nodding to the descendant forest region of West Africa. At the highest point of the sloped site, the memorial culminates in a circular mound composed of Barbadian rammed earth, framing a square field of vertical timber poles. The field is punctuated by 570 individual timber beams, each capped with circular brass plates oriented towards the sun to catch the Barbadian light. The juxtaposition of a square field within a primary circular form and the orientation of each timber beam creates a tapestry of interconnected mutations. Both metaphorically and physically, there is an unlocking of connections, extending out to the African continent and up towards the cosmos.

Along the perimeter of the memorial, a floating bench provides a moment for individual reflection, observation, and respite. In contrast, a void defines the centre of the timber colonnade, providing opportunities for libations, ceremonies, and secular events. The architecture balances earth and sky, water and land, the ancestors and the living, and this world and the next, creating a duality in this ethereal landscape.

In conclusion, the Newton Enslaved Burial Ground Memorial is a special project that provides a significant and fitting tribute to the ancestors who suffered under the evils of slavery. The monument, designed by David Adjaye, will demarcate a site of tragedy and trauma and transform it into a charged place of commemoration, remembrance, and connection. The future research institute and resource centre will generate scholarly research and public programs, making it the first of its kind in the Caribbean dedicated to exploring the history and enduring impact of slavery and forced migration on the world.


 

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Cover photo: Rendering of Newton Enslaved Burial Ground Memorial (aerial view). © David Adjaye Associates.

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