A golden eight-foot female sculpture placed on the roof of the state courthouse in New York City’s Flatiron district has elicited varying reactions on social media, with some declaring the statue “demonic.
“Was there any public input whatsoever before a satanic golden medusa demon with tentacle arms was installed atop a downtown courthouse? Who thinks this is okay? And how do we go about removing it?” NYC Councilwoman Vickie Paladino asked, per Fox News. (RELATED: Coretta Scott King’s Cousin Joins Masses Of People Who Are Outraged By $10 Million MLK Statue)
The “NOW” statue, a creation of Pakistani-American artist Shahzia Sikander, appears to arise from a pink lotus flower at its base and stands “staring regally ahead” with golden horn-like braids curling off of both sides of the head with tentacled arms spread wide. On its neck, the statue is donning a lace collar in honor of Ruth Bader Ginsberg, the New York Times reported.
A new statue atop a New York City courthouse. The artist says it’s part of an “urgent and necessary cultural reckoning underway as New York reconsiders traditional representations of power in public spaces and recasts civic structures to better reflect 21st-century social mores.” pic.twitter.com/4IFRj7hCsf
— Andrew Beck (@AndrewBeckUSA) January 25, 2023
“She is a fierce woman and a form of resistance in a space that has historically been dominated by patriarchal representation,” Sikander said of the sculpture per the New York Times. Sikander entitled the sculpture “NOW” because it was needed “now” referencing the U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade in June.
“NYC Courthouse has put up a gold-horned “goddess” statue to symbolize resistance & abortion rights. It literally looks like a demon. America loves celebrating death,” tweeted CEO and Founder of Elevate Beauty Amanda Ensing.
“New York has put an androgynous baphomet with tentacles digging into its own torso on top of the courthouse in order to “better reflect 21st century social mores.” Sounds about right,” another user tweeted.
The statue currently occupies a plinth that was once home to a turn-of-the-century eight-foot statue of the Prophet Muhammad removed in 1955, the New York Times reported. “NOW” will occupy the post until June when it will be moved to Houston, Fox News reported.