NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A controversial statue of former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt at the entrance of The American Museum of Natural History in New York City is set to be moved to North Dakota.
The bronze statue, which depicts the former president on horseback with a Native American man and an African man flanking the horse, is set to be moved to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora.
The library, which opens next year, will be receiving the artwork as a long-term loan from the New York City museum, where the statue has sat since 1940.
According to The Associated Press, the statue was designed by James Earle Fraser and was commissioned by the Board of Trustees of the New York State Roosevelt Memorial in 1929.
While the statue has become an iconic piece for the museum, in recent years, the art has been subject to criticism from activists and some politicians – including Mayor Bill de Blasio.
In 2020, Mayor de Blasio formally called for the sculpture's removal, noting it was “problematic.” The New York City Public Design Commission voted to relocate the artwork nearly one year later.
“We are grateful to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library for proposing a fitting new home for the Equestrian Statue,” Vicki Been, New York's deputy mayor for housing and economic development, said in a statement. “This long-term loan would allow an important part of the City’s art collection to be appropriately contextualized, and we look forward to continuing to work with the library on next steps.”
The relocation has the support of members of the Roosevelt family, and the library intends to establish an advisory council that includes members of the Indigenous and Black communities, to “guide the recontextualization” of the artwork.
“The Equestrian Statue is problematic in its hierarchical depiction of its subjects and should be removed from New York State’s official memorial to Theodore Roosevelt,” Theodore Roosevelt V said in the statement.
“Rather than burying a troubling work of art, we ought to learn from it.”
He added: “It is fitting that the statue is being relocated to a place where its composition can be recontextualized to facilitate difficult, complex, and inclusive discussions.”
The American Museum of Natural History will aid in the relocation, which is expected to take several months. The move, including any plans to display the statue, requires final approval by New York City's Public Design Commission.
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(©2021 1010 WINS. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)