Paul Gough spoke about sites of memory, posing a number of questions at the beginning of his discussion:
– When does space become a place? (He suggested it is when a space is imbued or endowed with human presence)
– How does something become a memorial?
– Why do we produce memorials/monuments?
Paul argued that we create memorials for 4 main reason: to have a focal point for grief; to have an index of memory; to have a planned icon in the city; and finally to have a place of ritual.
Paul also spoke about dark tourism, which I took an interest to. I did a bit of research on the topic and found this website, which lists various dark tourism sites across the world. There is quite a lot of speculation about why this type of tourism is so popular. Is it for remembrance, education or entertainment?
I found this lecture quite interesting and it gave me even more ways to consider ideas of space.
