Tour South 7: Four Freedoms Park

They say you can't rush art. Well, no one rushed Louis Kahn, whose Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial took 37 years to be realized.

Based on President Roosevelt's State of the Union Address on January 6, 1941, the monument was designed by famed modernist architect Luis Kahn in 1972, and is the only Kahn work in New York City.

Sadly, Kahn died in 1974, and never saw his design built. Admirers of his work and of President Roosevelt campaigned to have the monument built and by 2005, had collected over $50 million. The memorial was dedicated as FDR Four Freedoms Park on October 17, 2012, and officially opened as a New York State park on October 24th. The park is almost entirely landfill, much of which came from the demolition of City Hospital

The memorial is free to visit, but a $5.00 donation is suggested. To learn more about the memorial, check out their website and a different great digital resource here. Venture up the stairs and down to the end of the memorial for a fantastic few of Manhattan and a stunning and very quiet room meant for reflection.

Now that we've seen the newest edition on the island, let's take a look at an older building that's been given new life!

South Tour Stop 7: Four Freedoms Park

Four Freedoms Park by Louis Kahn