An shocking new 8-foot-tall golden statue standing on top of a New York City courthouse has sparked controversy, with many across the country reacting to its unveiling with disgust. One media outlet even called it a “Satanic golden medusa.” According to the artist who created the statue, it’s a symbol of women’s empowerment and an expression of support for abortion. The “Satanic” imagery so many have pointed out closely resembles that employed by a pro-abortion group dedicated to banning religion from the public square. The golden-horned female statue titled “NOW” was made by Pakistani-born artist Shahzia Sikander. Sikander, 53, has been an influential New York City artist for years, serving on the Mayoral Advisory Commission on City Art, Monuments, and Markers in New York in 2017. A self-described “citizen of the world,” Sikander says her work is meant to take classical and Indo-Persian styles and imbue them with modern feminist inflections. By depicting a naked, horned female image, Sikander said she meant to break from tradition. “I have always had an affinity for the anti-monument in my practice,” Sikander explained in an artistic statement released on Madison Square Park Conservancy’s website. Explaining the figure’s nakedness, Sikander said that “the body is a powerful tool that carries its social construction. It can also function as a site of resistance.” The statue rises atop a lotus flower, which Sikander described as “alluding to perception as illusion” and signifying “a deeper truth beyond its form.”
https://www.ncregister.com/cna/how-the-satanic-new-york-city-courthouse-statue-is-all-about-abortion
