Since the six-month anniversary of 9/11, Tribute in Light—which consists of two shafts of light projected upward—has been installed annually. An ethereal surrogate for the absent towers, the lights’ white luminescence not only replaces the void in New York’s skyline with a sense of memory and the possibility of hope and rebirth, but its ghostly presence is also a moving commemoration of the thousands of men and women who died on September 11, 2001.

Immaterial, yet powerfully resonant, Tribute in Light reaches out into the stratosphere—the ultimate symbol of how Creative Time’s unique approach to public art is capable of something both profound and transformative.

Photograph by Charlie Samuels

Julian Laverdiere and Paul Myoda

Tribute in Light

Manhattan

2002