Bellevue's Sept. 11 statue reflects twin towers

Julie Lindell stood beside a drill press yesterday, sliding small aluminum slats beneath the whirring drill bit and grinding out a hole. One down, nearly 3,000 to go.

"It's very satisfying," the Seattle artist said from a loading dock at the Bellevue Art Museum.

What might be a tiresome task took on new meaning for Lindell because she has a hand in creating a sculpture marking the one-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Bellevue officials hope that satisfaction can be extended to hundreds of other people when the sculpture is displayed in Downtown Park next month.

Each tag, bearing the name of one of the more than 3,000 people killed on Sept. 11, will be hung on the metal framework of two towers 11 feet or 12 feet. The tags will create the shimmering walls of the towers that will be erected in a pond at the park to capture their reflections in the water.

In the coming weeks, at churches, Bellevue Square and Crossroads malls and elsewhere, people will have a chance to write one of the victims' names on a tag.

"People can have hands-on contact with the medallions," said Mercer Island artist Ingrid Lahti, who designed the sculpture.

A coalition of groups, including the city, the museum, Bellevue Community College and the Bellevue Downtown Association, along with volunteers such as Lindell, are arranging a series of events — from musical performances and theatrical readings to a video and public discussions on world politics.

"What we're doing is trying to construct an opportunity for people in the community to plug in where they feel comfortable," said Barbara Jirsa, director of public and community affairs at the Bellevue Art Museum, one of the chief organizers of three days of activities.

On Sept. 9, organizers hope to host a reading of "The Guys," a play about the grief that followed the attacks in New York. It features two characters: a fire-department captain and a writer trying to help the captain draft eulogies for firefighters killed in the World Trade Center. The performance at the Bellevue Art Museum will only happen if the play is published before then, Jirsa said.

A day later, people can watch a short video created by Monika Bravo, a New York artist who had a studio in one of the trade center's towers. That will be followed by a discussion of world politics, modeled after a series of gatherings hosted in Bellevue in the months after the attacks.

Finally, on Sept. 11, attention will turn to the city's Downtown Park.

There, people will be able to see the sculpture now under construction.

Lahti was looking for a design that was "lucid" and that allowed people to feel involved.

She found her inspiration on the wall of a fire station next to Ground Zero.

In April she visited New York City and saw the bright-red station wall covered with embroidered cloth insignias from police and fire departments from around the country — small markers of solidarity.

Lahti changed those patches into small aluminum rectangles resembling oversized versions of the dog tags worn by soldiers.

Local music groups also will perform in the park Sept. 11, 6-8 p.m. People will be able to make small origami boats to float on the pond, and tie ribbons or messages to a section of chain-link fence placed nearby.

"We're looking for a contemplative atmosphere," Jirsa said.

Smaller events are planned around the city in the days surrounding Sept. 11. The art museum will display drawings by local children in response to the attacks. Bellevue Community College is crafting a curriculum to take to local high schools.

Warren Cornwall: 206-464-2311 or wcornwall@seattletimes.com.