America, land of the free was not indeed the case for the countless numbers of African slaves brought here to toil endlessly on the farms and plantations of the South. To them, it was a land of constant labor, of an oppressed life serving a master not of their choosing. Middleton Place is one of the great gardens in America and once a thriving plantation. It is a place of great beauty; a beauty purchased at the cost of human suffering. The extensive gardens as well as the once standing home were constructed and tended by slave later. The capital needed to achieve these monuments was accumulated through the many slaves who maintained the rice fields adjacent to the plantation and elsewhere along the Ashley River. It is with this in mind that a centre is proposed for the grounds of Middleton Place. Located adjacent to the rice mill on the property, the project is meant to tell the full story, to make visible those who had been invisible, to honor and remember those that gave so much of their lives in labor of the land and place; to restore human dignity, and give hope back to the land that has been scarred by the events of its past, The idea proposes that every year in early March (the historical time of rice planting), an interdisciplinary team (a historian, landscape architect and horticulturist) gathers together to design a garden on the grounds of Middleton. This new garden embodies the spirit of the place by commemorating the sacrifices that were made here; and that signifies the healing of the land, renewal of the human spirit and unity of all people. A major component of the garden design is the development of a symbolic new plant. The new plant and garden will be celebrated every October in a special ceremony and can be seen by visitors throughout its growing period. After the exhibition is completed and ground turned over, the new plant and garden documentation become part of an ongoing living exhibition and the cycle begins again with a new team for the next year. Spaces and Descriptions: A place of solitude: A meditative place to remember the people who were bound as slaves at Middleton Place, to reflect on their suffering and the stifling of the physical and intellectual potential of these Americans held back by this repressive institution. This space is located within the main mass of the structure, providing a secluded seating area with a controlled view out to the mill pond and grounds beyond. Carved from the mass, and compressed from overhead by the large community space, it allows the oppressive nature of slavery to be felt through implied weight. A place to consider beauty and suffering: An enclosed place for growing plants year round, here plants will be developed for the yearly commemorative garden and also exhibit the previous gardens and plants of past commemorative gardens. This area is on the uppermost level of the structure, providing both light to the growing area, and views to the house site, over the gardens, and to the new garden site. This connection with the past and future reminds visitors as well as the team working at the centre exactly what has been and what will be. Places to study: These small cells created for the team that will be present at the centre through the year give a place to contemplate, read, and work in private. The spaces are small in size, accessed through doors on the north face of the main structure. their volume also extends past the structure's south face, creating a contrasting extrusion in both form and material. Each cell is provided a view to the millpond and woodland gardens through a narrow fenestration. A place to work together: This space allows for creativity and the development of profound ideas. A collaborative work space with studio and meeting space for team (horticulturist, historian, landscape architect) along the second level of the centre. This space is open and easily transitioned for differing work environments as well as use by others during the year for meetings when the team is not present. A place to gather in community: Projecting out from the greater structure and seeming to ascend from it is the celebration area. This is a public gathering place to celebrate, honor, present, discuss. Here every year there will be a special celebration in October that presents the commemorative garden design. After the celebration the group makes a pilgrimage to the garden. During the rest of the year the space will be used as an event space for lectures, performances, weddings and banquets.