Sculpture of BLM protester ‘will have to be removed’
● Mayor says city needs consultation ● Subject recalls Black Power salute
The mayor of Bristol has said a sculpture of a Black Lives Matter protester erected on the plinth where a statue of slave trader Edward Colston used to stand “will have to be removed”.
Artist Marc Quinn created the life-size black resin and steel piece of Jen Reid, from Bristol, after seeing a photo of her standing on the empty plinth following the toppling of the Colston statue.
The sculpture, entitled A Surge of Power (Jen Reid), was installed shortly before 4:30am yesterday by Quinn’s team without the knowledge or consent of Bristol City Council.
A sign reading “Black Lives Still Matter” was placed at the foot of the plinth.
Mayor Marvin Rees tweeted: “I understand people want expression, but the statue has been put up without permission.
“Anything put on the plinth outside of the process we’ve put in place will have to be removed.
“The people of Bristol will decide its future.”
Mr Rees had previously said that any decision on how the plinth should be used would be decided democratically through consultation.
In a statement issued after the sculpture was erected, he said change needs to happen at a pace that “brings people with us”.
“The sculpture that has been installed today was the work and decision of a Londonbased artist,” Mr Rees said. “It was not requested and permission was not given for it to be installed.”
Mr Rees referenced a commission set up by the council to tell a “fuller history” of the city, including the part played by black people, women, the working class, trade unions and children.
He said this would put the city in a better position to understand “who we wish to honour”.
“As the commission shares this information, the city will decide on city memorials and the future of the plinth,” Mr Rees said.
After the sculpture was installed on the plinth, Mrs Reid stood in front of it with her fist in the air.
On 7 June, protesters on the Black Lives Matter march used ropes to pull the Colston statue from its plinth in the city centre.
It was dragged to the harbourside, where it was thrown in the water at Pero’s Bridge named in honour of enslaved man Pero Jones who lived and died in the city.
Mrs Reid described the Colston statue being thrown into the river as “a truly historical moment”.