COURIER L 6 IFE, APRIL 5–11, 2019 PS
ABSTRACT: Artists Amanda Williams and Olalekan Jeifous’s design shifts based on the
viewer’s perspective, and shows Chisholm intertwined with the US Capitol Building.
Department of Cultural Affairs
FINAL FIVE
City releases proposals for planned
memorial honoring Shirley Chisholm
BY COLIN MIXSON
City art honchos have narrowed proposals
for a Prospect Park memorial
to Brooklyn-born trailblazer Shirley
Chisholm to a shortlist of fi ve cuttingedge
designs, and now they’re asking
Kings County art critics to weigh in.
“We invite all New Yorkers let us
know what they think and help shape
this landmark contribution to NYC’s
public space,” said Cultural Affairs
Commissioner Tom Finkelpearl,
The city put out an open call for artists
in December after announcing the
memorial for Chisholm — who in 1968
made history as the fi rst black woman
elected to Congress — as the fi rst in
the She Built NYC series of statues
and monuments honoring women. In
January, a panel of city offi cials, design
gurus, and local stakeholders
whittled down the list of nominees to
fi ve artists, who created the proposals
revealed on March 27.
The proposed designs include:
• Firelie Báez’s shape-shifting portrait,
which includes three different
images of Chisholm that morph based
on the viewer’s perspective.
• La Vaughn Belle’s statue of Chisholm,
wearing a turban and carrying a
folding chair, that evokes her famous
quote, “If they don’t give you a seat at
the table bring a folding chair.”
• A massive bust of Chisholm proposed
by Tanda Francis, preceded
by a trail of motivational quotes and
vertical jets of light and water.
• A life-sized statue of Chisholm
seated on an antique car by Mickalene
Thomas, surrounded by planters
and benches.
• Similar to Báez’s proposal, artists
Amanda Williams and Olalekan Jeifous’s
design shifts based on the viewer’s
perspective, and shows Chisholm
intertwined with the US Capitol
Building.
Locals had until March 31 to submit
comments online regarding the fi ve
proposals, after which the city panel
will reconvene in April to select a fi nal
winner, although their draft proposal
may change before a fi nal design is
submitted for construction, according
to Ryan Max, a spokesman for the city
Department of Cultural Affairs.
The She Built NYC initiative that
spawned the Chisholm memorial project
was created on the suggestion of
the Mayoral Monuments Commission,
which Mayor de Blasio convened following
the riots that plagued Charlottesville
in 2017 amid a proposal by that
city’s government to remove a statue of
Confederate General Robert E. Lee.
The state of Chisholm will be installed
at the Parkside Avenue entrance
to Brooklyn’s Backyard located
near Ocean Avenue, and is expected to
be completed by the end of 2020.
To see all fi ve designs, visit brooklynpaper.
com/stories/42/14/dtg-shirley-chisholm
fi nal-fi ve-2019-04-05-bk.html