2hrs
 
Getting stones to speak is no easy task but this tour will attempt to do just that.  Washington DC is chock-full of monuments that have a lot to say.  Their stories are told through design choices, and symbolism is their primary language.  When we’re walking through these commemorative spaces, we’re being bombarded with a whole lot of intended messaging.  Who is choosing the points to be made? How do we know what we’re supposed to be hearing?  What do the monument makers want us to know and feel?  Are we wrong if we don’t get it?  Isn’t art supposed to be subjective?
 
During this tour I’ll be focusing on the intentions of the memorials, because their designers definitely had goals in that regard.  On top of that I’m also going to add yet another layer of thought, one that has to do with the relationship between art makers and art viewers.  Because whenever symbolism is involved, so is interpretation.  While the artists and architects are literally cutting marble and granite, those of us exploring the spaces are carving purpose out of their works…we are mining for meaning.  And this makes the grounds we’ll be walking a quarry for interpreters.  
 
Besides the popular memorials to Thomas Jefferson, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Dr Martin Luther King Jr, this walk also includes stops at the lesser known but significant commemorations to George Mason, District of Columbia war veterans and the country of Japan.  Along the way we’ll learn how the Potomac River both disrupted and molded this city’s landscape.  
 
The Tidal Basin memorials span the entirety of America’s timeline, from foundational inspirations through to active missions.  Within their solid rock are some pretty fluid concepts.  This tour will support you through the process of excavating the original design ideas and shaping your own interpretations.  We’ll dig deep into the history that the memorials commemorate and we’ll have fun discovering some quirky stories that influenced what we see today.