14 May 1940. A German bombardment of less then a quarter of an hour destroys the centre of Rotterdam. The destroyed buildings would never be rebuild, but make place for the modern architecture Rotterdam is known for today. The bombardment left a permanent mark that you can still experience when you walk over the periphery of the bombarded zone. Here you see the old city meet the new. In 2010 this 12 kilometer border became a monument: the Fire Boundary. The entire border is marked with LED spots designed by the Rotterdam based landscape architecture firm West 8. 

An iconic image of a flame is incorporated in circular light objects on the ground and in several information stations, that together form the marking. The image of the flame shows a visual connection with Zadkine's statue commemorating the bombing of Rotterdam.The light objects come to life at night illuminating the icon.

I was asked to design the ceremony in which the first 20 spots were unveiled.