25 Years Later – Webster University Picture Exhibit and Lectures Discover the Aftermath of 9/11

WEBSTER GROVES, Mo. — Webster University presents “9/11: A twenty fifth Anniversary Photography
Exhibition of the Terrorist Attacks in New York City,” an exhibition of images
by Jane Martin and of observations from anthropologist and former School of Communications
Dean Eric Rothenbuhler, PhD. Both lived instantly throughout the Hudson River from the
Twin Towers and documented the influence on the area within the following months.

Presented throughout the primary flooring of the Sverdrup Building and the Emerson Library
Exhibition Space (Conference Room 120), the exhibition can be held now by way of Dec.
15, 2026. A public lecture that includes Rothenbuhler can be hosted on the anniversary
of the assaults – 1 p.m. on Friday, September 11, in Sverdrup Hall, Room 123, adopted
by a reception within the Emerson Library Exhibition Space, instantly subsequent door to the
Gallery.

“They say that each era has had a second, one thing that occurred that was
so profound that everybody appears to recollect the influence it had on them and precisely
the place they have been once they realized of the occasion, and it perpetually altered their view.
The assault on Pearl Harbor, the assassination of President Kennedy or the homicide of
John Lennon are amongst these incidents,” stated Kristina Richards, director of the Webster
University’s Kooyumjian Gallery. “The assault on the Twin Towers in 2001 is one in all
these occasions. Through this exhibit and lecture, we’ll see and listen to first-hand witnesses
to the assault, the way it instantly modified New York City and the nation, and the lasting
influence it’s having on us right now.”

In August 2001, Martin and Rothenbuhler relocated to Jersey City, New Jersey, instantly
throughout the Hudson River from the World Trade Center. Just weeks later, they witnessed
the assaults firsthand. While Rothenbuhler noticed the unfolding occasions as an anthropologist
and saved an intensive journal documenting the cultural response, Martin spent the
day photographing the collapse of the Twin Towers, the evacuation of decrease Manhattan,
and the extraordinary acts of compassion, mourning, and resilience that adopted.

The ensuing exhibition affords a uncommon eyewitness perspective—not centered solely on
destruction, however on the profound human response that emerged in its aftermath.

Martin’s images doc ferry evacuations throughout the Hudson River, crowds gathering
on the waterfront to witness an unimaginable occasion, and the transformation of New
York’s public areas into locations of remembrance and collective therapeutic. Her photos
seize impromptu memorials, missing-person posters, handwritten messages, American
flags, volunteers organizing reduction provides, rescue and restoration employees touring
to and from Ground Zero, and the outstanding outpouring of assist that grew to become recognized
as “Point Thank You” alongside the West Side Highway.

Together, these images reveal how bizarre streets, parks, lamp posts, barricades,
and sidewalks grew to become momentary monuments the place grief, gratitude, and hope have been publicly
expressed. Union Square, Washington Square Park, neighborhood firehouses, and numerous
metropolis intersections grew to become locations the place strangers gathered to mourn collectively, leaving
flowers, candles, images, poems, and messages that remodeled the town into
a residing memorial.

The exhibition additionally consists of images made within the months following the assaults,
documenting New York’s gradual restoration and the emergence of recent symbols of remembrance,
together with the now-iconic Tribute in Light, first illuminated in March 2002. Rather
than presenting historical past as distant reminiscence, these photos look at the cultural work
required to rebuild a group after profound trauma.

As Rothenbuhler displays, the assaults shattered assumptions about security and permanence,
perpetually altering how Americans understood public area, safety, citizenship, and
vulnerability. Nearly 3,000 individuals have been killed on September 11, 2001, greater than 6,000
have been injured, and hundreds of survivors, first responders, restoration employees, and
close by residents have since confronted long-term well being penalties. The assaults additionally
reshaped nationwide safety coverage, emergency preparedness, aviation safety, and
public life in ways in which proceed to affect on a regular basis expertise twenty-five years
later.

More than a historic file, “9/11: A twenty fifth Anniversary Photography Exhibition of
the Terrorist Attacks in New York City” is an exploration of witnessing. Martin’s
images ask viewers to think about not solely what occurred on September 11, however how
communities reply to unimaginable loss, how public reminiscence is created, and the way pictures
preserves moments that may in any other case fade from collective consciousness.

By documenting each devastation and restoration, the exhibition affords a possibility
for reflection, remembrance, and dialog for many who skilled September
11 firsthand and for generations who comprehend it solely by way of historical past.

Admission is free and open to the general public.

Details:

9/11: A twenty fifth Anniversary Photography Exhibition of the Terrorist Attacks in New York
City
July 1–December 15, 2026
Lecture to be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, September 11.
Sverdrup Hall, Room 123, Webster University Campus, 8300 Big Bend Blvd, 63119.
A reception instantly follows the lecture in Emerson Library Exhibition Space.
The occasion is free and open to the general public.