FX.co ★ Statues of discord: monuments that cause public outrage

Forever Marilyn

The monument "Forever Marilyn" was devoted to Hollywood star Marilyn Monroe. It represents one of the most famous images of the actress from the film "The Seven Year Itch". Created in 2011, the statue was presented to the public in Chicago. Later, the 8-meter sculpture weighing 15 tons was displayed in various states across the world. Once, the monument even traveled to Australia. However, in some places, the statue of the movie star with a raised skirt caused scandal and indignation. The monument has been criticized for its sexist image. In 2021, residents of Palm Springs, where the sculpture was located, began collecting signatures for its dismantling.

Wehrmacht (memorial to deserters from Hitler's army)

The monument was made in the form of the giant concrete letter "X". On its surface, the poems of Scotsman Ian Finlay are written. It was installed in 2015 in Vienna. The monument is dedicated to the Austrian soldiers who deserted from Hitler's army during the Second World War. Later, most of them were caught and killed. The reaction of local residents to the sculpture was mixed. Veterans, for example, said that not all deserters should be honored. Others were outraged that taxpayers' money was used to create the monument because desertion is a crime in the country.

Entropa

In 2009, the Czech Republic was preparing to hold its first EU presidency. On this occasion, local sculptor David Černý was hired to make a monument with colleagues from Europe. At the beginning of the year, the Entropa statue was unveiled to the EU Council in Brussels, causing a big diplomatic scandal. It turned out that David Černý worked alone, having invented the names of his assistants. Apart from that, many people were outraged by how the author presented the countries on the map by simply exploiting banal cultural stereotypes. The installation was moved to the Czech city of Pilsen.

Dirty Corner

One of the biggest art scandals took place in 2015. A large-scale monument called "Dirty Corner" was installed at France’s Palace of Versailles. It was an 8-meter steel pipe. Visitors could go inside and experience rather unusual sensations. The farther they moved, the darker the space became. People were outraged. They deeply hated this monument, finding it too ugly and gross for the luxurious Palace of Versailles. One day the monument was desecrated by vandals. In total, the "Dirty Corner" was located there for only six months.

Big Clay No 4

Swiss artist Urs Fischer is known for turning upside down accepted canons in his works. He likes to shock and tease the audience. The public very often does not understand his bold experiments. His "Big Clay No. 4" monument was not an exception. For the first time, the monument made in the form of a 50-fold enlarged piece of clay was installed in New York. After that, it was transported to Florence. Last summer, the statue reached the Russian capital. Moscow residents were the harshest critics of this piece of art. Some accused the artist of mediocrity, while others, on the contrary, praised his unique approach.

African Renaissance

In 2010, Senegal celebrated the 50th anniversary of independence from France. To honor this event, the government installed the "African Renaissance" monument in Dakar. The bronze sculpture represents 2 figures standing side by side: a man and a woman. The man holds a child in his arms. The child looks out toward the sea. However, the locals did not like the monument. The majority were displeased that the sculptor depicted half-naked people, while others were shocked by the amount of money that the authorities spent on the construction of the statue. The sum totaled $27 million despite the fact that the country was in a deep economic crisis.