In 1985, Cherry Groce was shot by police in her London home at the age of 37. She was left paralyzed, later passing away aged 63 as a direct result of injuries sustained that day. In her honour, Adjaye Associates has created a memorial design to be installed in Windrush Square, Brixton, the neighbourhood in which Groce lived.
The project, designed for the Cherry Groce Foundation, a charity founded to support marginalised Black, Caribbean and African communities, will not only serve as a visual reminder and memorial piece, but is also conceived as a pavilion for the local community. Providing shading and seating for passers-by, the structure was composed to complement the square’s existing features and geometry.
‘Sir David Adjaye’s vision for the memorial aims to create awareness and understanding of the life, strength, and experience of Cherry Groce and her family,’ the studio states. The single column represents Groce’s strength, and the roof symbolises the Brixton community’s ability to provide shelter. The piece is designed as a permanent reminder of the terrible injustice that Groce suffered.
‘The construction of this memorial will speak to restorative justice and will symbolise that what matters to the community, matters to London and the whole world,’ says Adjaye. ‘This tragedy went too long in the public realm without acknowledgement and there is now renewed urgency and importance in finally facing this history’. §