British sculptor Thomas J. Price’s 12-foot-tall bronze statue “Grounded in the Stars” (2023), which monumentalizes a casually dressed Black woman with her hands on her hips, has sparked immense online discussion since it was installed smack-dab in the center of Times Square on April 29. On a rainy Wednesday morning, Hyperallergic set out to hear from people seeing the artwork in person, and their thoughts were considerably different from much of the digital discourse.
In recent weeks, “Grounded in the Stars” has become a hotbed for conversations about race and representation on all corners of the internet. Conservative outlets and commentators have attacked the work as a DEI initiative that doesn’t depict anyone with noteworthy accolades or achievements compared to the adjacent statues of Father Francis P. Duffy and George M. Cohan. They also latched onto the fact that the work represents a fictionalized, nondescript Black woman who wasn’t modeled after anyone in particular.
Rosheka Faulkner, a 27-year-old PhD student from New Jersey who was passing through Manhattan for an appointment, said she had come across a lot of that criticism, but deliberately tuned it out to avoid frustration.
“ It really speaks to me to see a Black woman — a plus-size woman — standing in the middle of Times Square,” Faulkner told Hyperallergic. “I think it reflects what I hoped this country would be, and also is a juxtaposition of how I see this country currently. The statue is so big, you can’t miss it. It forces you to stop, think, and grapple.”
The discourse on representation has also yielded heated disagreements between Black women content creators and users on TikTok and other social media platforms. Some find that the sculpture’s appearance reinforces negative stereotypes entrenched in misogynoir and White supremacy, while others are excited to see a figure that resembles them being celebrated in one of the busiest and famous areas in the United States, and are dismayed by the insults lobbed at the work. The artist notes in his statement for the sculpture that the work is meant to “disrupt” the traditional depiction of a triumphant figure, and “challenges who should be immortalized through monuments.”
For Texas resident Stephanie Hamm, who spoke with Hyperallergic during her family vacation to the Big Apple, the statue does indeed represent “a regular Black woman who is unapologetically herself.”
Asked about the artist’s intention in reframing monumentalism, Hamm said that in her opinion, “the Black woman has cared for the whole country, and her contribution has just gone unnoticed for centuries.”
“The Black woman has taken care of everyone’s babies, everyone’s elderly, and so on, and now she gets this space where she could just be celebrated for who she is, just because she’s a Black woman,” Hamm said before she and her family headed out of Times Square as the rain intensified.
As drops began pelting umbrellas, Atlanta resident Carolyn Shepherd stopped to take in the bronze statue as well. Commemorating her late mother’s birthday today, Shepherd was in New York to see Moulin Rouge featuring Boy George on Broadway and heard about the sculpture online.
“I think it’s necessary,” Shepherd told Hyperallergic. “I love statues, and I seek them out, but there aren’t a lot of statues of women, and we need more representation.”
Shepherd also pointed out that the statues of George M. Cohan and Father Francis P. Duffy were smaller. Price’s sculpture, she added, is “larger than life.”
Terry Grant, 63, visiting from Utah with his daughter, said that he appreciated that the sculpture “represents real women how they are today.”
Another party that was tuned into the digital perception of the sculpture were Atlanta residents and sisters Marsha Thomas and Margaret Harvin Cole. Thomas’s daughter had sent her a post about the sculpture earlier that week.
“Online, the work looks more harsh,” Thomas remarked, saying that the sculpture appeared dark and unflattering. “In person, she looks a lot better. She looks like someone I would know, or someone in my family — maybe one of my nieces.”
“She looks like me!” Harvin Cole interjected.
“I think when it comes to Black people and their depiction in general, there will always be some controversy at hand regarding the material, the artist, and who is represented,” Thomas continued. “People [of color] are more mindful and sensitive of what’s put out there — who is supposed to be representing the image of a Black person, and who is supposed to create that image?”
Harvin Cole said that the sculpture represents the everyday Black woman. “She’s got hips, thighs, she’s full-figured; that represents 60% of Americans.” She added, “I like her. Her eyes are so alive, too. So welcoming.”
Both sisters lauded Price’s depiction of the woman’s braids and her natural-looking appearance.
Visiting New York from Minneapolis, Minnesota, Matt and Madeline Novachis were celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary in New York City when they spoke with Hyperallergic. The pair was huddled together, photographing “Grounded in the Stars” on their phones as rivulets of water drained off of the rear spokes of their umbrellas.
Madeline had read arguments for and against the sculpture online and wanted to see it for herself.
“ I love the intention that the artist had and I think she’s beautiful — it almost made me cry looking at it,” she said.
Rhonda Thompson, who lives in New York, brought her friend Quiana Brown, a visiting Angeleno who goes by QBStyles, to see the artwork. They had an impromptu photo shoot with the sculpture and also volunteered to take photos for another party of women visiting from Louisiana.
“ I just like that she represents a real woman — not a BBL [Brazilian Butt-lift] model, but like what real woman looks like today,” Brown exclaimed, expressing her love and admiration for the sculpture.
Thompson noted that it was great to have full-figured representation right here in Times Square, and that she would be bringing her nine-year-old to see the statue before it gets taken down on June 17.
When asked if representation like this moves the needle towards equity and progress in any way, Thompson said that “ it depends on who you’re asking.”
“ That man that’s in office right now, he’s probably trying to figure out how to have her removed,” she continued. “But if you see here, all races, cultures, and creeds are taking pictures and standing around admiring her. So I think that it should push the needle just a little bit in the right direction.”
Brown added that “anything that creates dialogue pushes the needle — just hopefully in the right direction.”