A courthouse in New York has had sculptures of men alone on its plinths for more than a century. The work of a Pakistani-American artist has changed that.
On the roof of a neoclassical building in Manhattan, a female sculpture measuring eight feet tall and gleaming with gold joins Zoroaster, Confucius, Moses, and six other male ancient jurists. The 53-year-old artist Shahzia Sikander wanted to draw attention to the lack of women’s figures on public statues in the US, which typically honor white men. The artist told AFP that representation is important, especially for women, in fields like law and art that have historically been dominated by men.
The context of the courtroom, she continued, “allows for a totally different discussion to take place, so of course, placing the figure on the courthouse’s roof, allows for that to happen. Since it was built in the late 19th century, the structure in Manhattan’s Flatiron District has had ten plinths. Following objections from Pakistan, Indonesia, and Egypt, one of them had a statue of the Prophet Mohammed removed from it in 1955. A plinth was left empty despite the subsequent shifting of several statues over it. Where the Byzantine emperor Justinian formerly stood is now occupied by a sculpture by Sikander. A female figure rising from a pink lotus flower with her hair braided into spiral horns is how she is shown in her statue.
It draws attention to the prejudice that women still experience, whether it is about “health and education rights, equitable economic opportunities, gender-based violence, or race or class discrimination,” according to Sikander. She stated in her artist’s statement about the piece that gender bias still presents obstacles for many women despite the long battles for legal, socioeconomic, and political equality. Sikander, a native of Lahore who immigrated to the United States 30 years ago, gave the piece the title “NOW” in reference to current events that, in the opinion of its critics, have undermined women’s rights.
When it overruled Roe v. Wade in June of last year, the Supreme Court, which has had a pronounced rightward bias since Donald Trump took office, abolished the federal right to abortion. The statue features the distinctive lace collar worn by progressive Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a liberal icon who passed away in September 2020 at the age of 87. The development of women’s constitutional rights was halted by Ginsburg’s passing and the overturning of Roe, according to Sikander.
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The temporary piece is a component of her display “Havah… to breathe, air, life,” which also includes the 18-foot sculpture “Witness” in neighboring Madison Square Park. The two pieces will be on show until June.
