A group calling themselves the “National Iraq War Memorial Foundation” has launched an online design competition we caught thanks to the blog Life Without Buildings. The group concedes designing a war memorial before the war ends is a bit unorthodox, however they say “This is a different kind of memorial, however — one that incorporates current emotions, memories, and beliefs.” Entering designs for their proposed site is simple and free, and after a March 23 deadline a “a blue ribbon panel of judges” will announce a winner on July 2. The group proposes to construct their memorial on the Ellipse, even though the National Capitol Planning Commission declared the mall was full, and a “finished work of civic art.”

The entries so far are available on their site, and several deserve credit for their creativity. One contestant would create an outline of Iraq on the Ellipse built out of 15 foot mirrored glass walls etched with quotes from leaders who conceived and implement the war. They explain: “I want people to read these quotes and, at the same time, see reflections in the glass, reflections of themselves and of the world around them.”

Another makes a case for thrift, proposing combining Iraq’s “Martyrs’ Memorial” to Iraqis who died in the Iran-Iraq War (“their pointless war”) and the crossed swords Saddam installed over his military parade ground to result in the “perfect combination of somber salute and military triumphalism.” See DCist on the planning of the National Mall and another statement on the war in Iraq at the Ellipse.