Maya Lin's winning design for the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial, off the Mall in Washington D.C., helped to create an acceptance for abstract art as a conveyer of emotion over literal historicism (a short-lived acceptance with the recent World War II Memorial design). The reflective granite surface brings the living and the deceased (or M.I.A.) together in the simple, recessed type, often used for rubbings and always touched lovingly with outstretched hands. Although a controversial design at the time of its selection, and subsequent unveiling, the Memorial has become a strong symbol associated with the Vietnam conflict and an important part of the healing process for family and friends of victims. New England Holocaust Memorial.Boston, Massachusetts