‘Dark Elegy’ Terror Memorial Bound for D.C.

By Russell Drumm

Suse and Peter Lowenstein in the midst of the 76 grieving figures that make up her sculptural installation “Dark Elegy,” a memorial for victims of terrorism

(10/17/2007)    The physical reaction to tragedy. The pose struck when one hears of a loved one’s violent death. “Dark Elegy” is a sculpture comprised of 76 such moments, the anguish of mothers, sisters, and wives frozen in time so that the pain of Dec. 21, 1988, the day Pan American Airways Flight 103 was blown up by terrorists over Lockerbie, Scotland — or of any other act of terror — may never be forgotten.

    On Oct. 1, Representative Tim Bishop introduced legislation that would bring the moving work to Washington, D.C., for permanent display. Although it was spurred by the bombing of Flight 103, the work is dedicated to all victims of terrorism.

    To say “Dark Elegy” came from the heart would be a gross understatement. The sculptor, Suse Lowenstein of Montauk, and her husband, Peter, lost their son, Alexander, a 21-year old student at Syracuse University, in the Flight 103 terror attack.

    To help cope with her loss, Ms. Lowenstein conceived of “Dark Elegy” as a group effort. Cautiously, she approached the women who shared the agony of that day, only to find that nearly all were willing to strip down, as they had been stripped emotionally that day.

    Ms. Lowenstein spent a year making small maquettes of the women, then 15 years more fashioning large figures of welded steel covered by wire mesh, filled with foam and coated with a synthetic stone. She used earth tones ranging from yellow to dark brown. If the Lowensteins get the nod from the National Parks Service, they will have the figures cast in bronze. The cost, estimated at about $2 million, will be paid from the Lowensteins’ share of a settlement with Libya, which acknowledged responsibility for the terror attack.

    In his introduction to the bill “to establish a memorial to all victims of terrorism,” Mr. Bishop noted that “Dark Elegy” was originally dedicated on Sept. 11, 1991, exactly one decade earlier than the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. “Dark Elegy was created to remind the world of the devastation that terrorism leaves in its wake. . . . Once a permanent location is found, the artist and her family will donate the memorial to the public,” Mr. Bishop told fellow congressmen.

    While on display at the Lowensteins’ property on East Lake Drive in Montauk, “Dark Elegy” has been visited by relatives of victims of other acts of terror, including those of Sept. 11, 2001. Ms. Lowenstein said people were welcome to view the work any day from 10 a.m. to noon. There is a small memorial park as well, established by friends of the popular Montauk surfer upland of his favorite surf spot, Atlantic Terrace.

    “We have a long way to go,” Ms. Lowenstein said on Monday, standing before her sculpture. She praised Mr. Bishop for his steadfast support of her and her husband’s goal. “Now, we’re looking for a champion in the Senate. I hope people will contact New York’s senators, Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton.”