Finance and Futurity

Abstract

This chapter offers a close reading of two cases of memorialisation that were organised privately by the families of individuals who were killed during attacks in July 2005. Unlike other examples of memo- rialisation, the challenge is not resolving diverse memorial desires in materiality but establishing which work might result in a lasting memorial to an individual life. Significantly, neither family stakes their work of memorialisation exclusively in the permanency of fixed material, choosing instead to engage with charity work by establishing a memorial foundation or trust. The first case introduces the Matthew Fulham Memorial Foundation. Matthew was killed in a bomb explosion on the eve of his 18th birthday during a family holiday in Sharm el-Sheikh. The second case focuses on the Miriam Hyman Memorial Fund and its evolution into a trust involved with the provision of eye care. Miriam was killed, while travelling to work, by the Tavistock Square explosion during the London bombings. Insight into both memorial projects comes from interviews carried out with Peter Fulham, Matthew’s father, and Esther Hyman, Miriam’s sister. Both Peter and Esther were founding members of their respective memorial projects and maintained organising roles.

The power and value of the body result from a process of abstraction based on the desire for eternity.

Achilles Mbembé