Maya Lin - A Strong Clear Vision (Architect Documentary)

A Strong Clear Vision is the story of May Lin and her struggles in bringing forth her vision of "The Wall" and her ten year career following her achievement. View this young college graduate as she receives the news of the acceptance of her design only to later get embroiled in political controversy surrounding her work. Hear a few embittered Vets denounce her design and disgrace themselves with their prejudice because she is Asian. As a young adult May Lin showed great poise, dignity and courage in defending her design. Such majurity at a young age is a testament to her strength and focused vision.

Her work moves beyond "The Wall" as we are showed her other works notably the Civil Rights Memorial, the Yale Women's Table and the Juniata Peace Chapel. In the former she makes use of the elements of water and circles to evoke messages of timelessness and participation within the events depicted. In the latter, she incorporates the rich natural architecture of Mother Earth to complement the chapel. May Lin's structures are bold, simplistic and hit at your soul in its deepest core. Through her art one finds healing and peace. The story of this remarkable woman is a testament to our new generation of women reconfiguring the meaning of architecture in our culture.


Masterful Tale of An Extraordinarily Gifted Woman   January 6, 2000
Vincent J. Moore, AICP (Seattle, WA)
13 out of 13 found this review helpful

Maya Lin, designer of the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial in Washington DC was a college student at Yale when she won a national competition for the Memorial Design. This video is a moving story of her presence and strength in her struggles against the political forces and angry, biased people who challenged her design. It traces the subsequent early professional years of this remarkable young woman, including a beautiful presentation of her design of the Civil Rights Memorial at the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama. This video is a must for anyone with a young daughter looking for an inspiring video about women's creativity, sensitivity and strength. A great gift for aspiring woman architects and sculptors.


poetry of the design process   May 23, 2004
Stephen M. Long (Alexander City, AL, USA)
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

This documentary film is a unique experience for which it is difficult to find a comparison. On a basic level, the film discusses several projects of artist/architect Maya Lin, a young Chinese-American woman who unexpectedly won the design competition for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial while a Yale student. Her design, a departure from conventional expectations, is now famous, and is the most visited memorial in Washington D.C. Some of the strong feelings that the Vietnam War elicits in people, especially its veterans, is touched upon in moving live scenes at the Memorial and in the controversial hearings that were held in the wake of the design's selection. The experience put Maya Lin in a national spotlight and forced the student to mature very quickly addressing the grievances of veterans and others. In the end, with some minor site additions, the Memorial stood as designed, with the names of all the veterans of Vietnam etched in its simple polished, reflective granite. Other works of Maya Lin, including the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama; the Yale Women's Table; and others demonstrate a similar simplicity and poetry that is both moving and powerful. There are moments in the film, as simple as when the artist is working at her drafting table, that suggest something both beautiful and spiritual, providing a deep insight into the creative process of this noted public artist.


A Superb Documentary on an Important Architect   June 6, 2000
Jeannie M. Zeck (U.S.)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful

This videotape is outstanding. Maya Lin was an architecture student at Yale when she won the anonymous competition to design and build the Viet Nam Veteran's Memorial in Washington D.C. The documentary chronicles the controversy over Lin's design and over her as an Asian-American female architect.

The domentary shows Lin facing the challenge of dealing with many angry veterans. The film reveals the racism and sexism that were pervasive in this controversy. Happily, Lin went on to build the memorial. Touching and painful scenes show hundreds of Viet Nam vets visiting the wall.

The film also chronicles other works of Lin including the Civil Rights monument in Alabama and the peace circle at Juniata College in Pennsylvania. This 90 minute documentary takes you into the mind of an intelligent, sensitve artist. I recommend it for high school and college classes dealing with race or gender issues, or any American history class. The film is also excellent viewing for anyone with personal interests in architecture.


A wonderful film about a real American Hero.   November 9, 2004
S. Granger (Los Angeles, California United States)
10 out of 11 found this review helpful

This film moved me. Maya Lin is incredibly gifted, articulate, and seems amazingly humble. The Vietnam Memorial, and the hardships of it's creation, show the young woman's strength. It's truely a feat worth the history books. The most striking thing I got out of this film though was the fact that it wasn't a fluke. The rest of her work is just as incredible, even if not as well known. I'm so glad that I saw this film. The DVD is well done, audio is good and the extras, while sparse, are enough. Everyone really should see this film about one of the great artists living in our time.