New Exhibit at September 11 Museum Views Trauma Through Young Eyes
A deeply moving new exhibit at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum recalls the terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center almost a quarter of a century ago through the prism of art created by children in the aftermath of the events.
The exhibit, “Drawing Meaning: Trauma and Children’s Art After 9/11,” features more than 70 original sketches, murals, collages, and quilts. Some of the young artists who created these works lost family members, such as Katie, then age 14, whose uncle died at Ground Zero. She wrote about him, “I am so sad that he is not here right now, memories of him brings a smile to my face.” Another artist is Andrew, whose father worked at Windows on the World and survived because he happened to take his 11-year-old son to school that morning.
“Children are witnesses to history, too,” explains Ian Kerrigan, the museum’s senior vice president for exhibitions. “They see it, they see the reactions of the adults around them, and they are affected by it. This exhibit documents their experience of September 11. How children felt grief and trauma, and how they processed it.”
Mr. Kerrigan notes, “the art created by children evokes their search for answers. They identified important figures, such as victims, survivors, recovery workers, and terrorists. They also noticed important themes like volunteering, charitable giving, and the resolve to rebuild New York City. As children developed their own points of view, art became the vehicle to express their ideas as well as their feelings.”
Many of the works are display were first created in schools, some in Lower Manhattan and around the metropolitan area. Others come from schools across the United States, as well as summer camp programs – in many cases addressed simply “Ground Zero, USA.” Still more were sent by children from foreign countries. “Schools and camps didn’t want to discard these pieces,” Mr. Kerrigan explains, “but weren’t set up to keep them indefinitely. So many of them eventually found their way into the museum’s collection.”
The art produced by children in late 2001 also evinced some striking patterns, such as drawing the same picture again and again, or asking repeatedly for black, white, and red paint. (The first two were frequently mixed into gray, to depict smoke, while red was used for flames.) Teachers and art therapists were of two minds about this, with some distressed by the fixation on such traumatic images, but others believing these drawings helped children process the events.
“Drawing Meaning” will also be supplemented by a public program, “Through Their Eyes: Therapeutic Art for Grieving Children,” on March 6, starting at 6pm. This event will explore the role of art-making and art therapy to process grief and trauma, with a focus on two organizations created in the wake of September 11: the World Trade Center Family Center and America’s Camp, a summer sleep-away camp for young relatives of September 11 victims.
The “Drawing Meaning” exhibit (which is made possible by support from the Museums for America grant program, operated by the Institute of Museum and Library Services) opens today (Wednesday, February 19) and will be on display in the Museum’s South Tower Galley for approximately 18 months.
In a related development, the September 11 Museum has recently expanded free hours for New Yorkers to visit on the first Sunday of each month throughout 2025. Made possible by a philanthropic grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, this program was initially offered on a limited basis in 2024 to mark the decade anniversary of the Museum’s dedication. All interested visitors who work, live, or study in New York City and the surrounding area should be prepared to show a valid ID upon entry. Tickets become available on a rolling basis each month. And admission is always free for September 11 family members and all individuals eligible for the World Trade Center Health program.