Now the city has a whole new figure that is held on the once empty pedestal: a protester.
British artist Marc Quinn has erected a statue depicting a woman with her fist raised in a Black Power salute at the place where Colston once stood. He based the artwork on a photograph of Jen Reid, a Bristol resident who had stepped into the void socket when he returned home from the June rally.
The statue was placed where the monument to slave merchant Edward Colston once stood. Credit: Marc Quinn Studio
After contacting the woman in the photo, Jen Reid, the artist produced a life-size sculpture of the moment with black resin. In a press release released Wednesday, he said the sculpture “is an embodiment and amplification of Jen’s ideas and experiences, and of the past, present and her hope for a better future.”
“My friend … “He showed me an Instagram photo of Jen standing on the Bristol pedestal with her fist in a salute from Black Power,” he said. “My first instant thought was how amazing it would be to make a sculpture of her in that instant.”
“It is such a powerful image, of a moment that I felt it had to materialize, forever. I contacted Jen through social media to discuss the idea of the sculpture and she said she wanted to collaborate.”
Jen Reid pictured next to the statue. Credit: Marc Quinn Studio
The work, officially titled “A Surge of Power (Jen Reid) 2020”, is intended to be temporary. The artist confirmed that he did not receive permission from the authorities to erect the statue. In the event the artwork is sold, Quinn said the proceeds will be donated to two charities, chosen by Reid, that promote the inclusion of black history in the school curriculum.
“Jen and I are not putting this sculpture on the plinth as a permanent solution to what should be there; it is a spark that we hope will help draw continued attention to this vital and pressing problem,” Quinn added.
“We want to continue highlighting the unacceptable problem of institutionalized and systemic racism that everyone has a duty to face. This sculpture had to happen in the public realm now: this is not a new problem, but it seems that there has been a global problem. Turning point . “
‘It was totally spontaneous’
In a press release released by Quinn’s study, Reid recalled feeling an “overwhelming urge” to climb to the socket after the protest, which drew some 10,000 people to the streets of Bristol on June 7.
“When I stood on the socket and raised my arm in a Black Power salute, it was totally spontaneous, I didn’t even think about it,” she said. “It was like an electric charge of energy was going through me.”
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Reid said he agreed to collaborate with Quinn to help “keep the road to racial justice and equity moving.”
“This sculpture tries to defend my mother, my daughter, black people like me,” he continued. “It’s about black kids seeing it up there. It’s something to be proud of, to have a sense of belonging, because we really belong here and we’re not going anywhere.”
The original bronze statue had been in the city center of Bristol since 1895, but had become increasingly controversial due to Colston’s role in the Atlantic slave trade. The sculpture faced requests calling for its removal earlier.
The statue depicted before being lifted into place. Credit: Marc Quinn Studio
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