An 18-foot golden sculpture of a feminine figure with ram-horn braids and root-like arms was slated to go up outside Rung for Women in St. Louis' Fox Park; before its installation, Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway weighed in. Hanaway decried the planned installation and said area residents had described the artwork, titled “Witness,” as a “demonic affront to faith,” setting off a clash between state officials and a neighborhood nonprofit over a piece of public art.
The sculpture, created by artist Shahzia Sikander, was installed on a permanent loan from the Gateway Foundation, according to St. Louis Magazine. Rung for Women, described as a career accelerator and development center, said the piece reflects women’s strength, resilience, and determination on their life journey and aligns with Rung’s work, per the same outlet. The Gateway Foundation said it chose “Witness” foremost for its artistic merit and beauty, and secondly for its exploration of women's autonomy, belonging, and representation in public art.
Hanaway did not stop at calling the work demonic. She also said its arrival in Fox Park happened in secrecy, alleging minimal public notice and no real opportunity for neighborhood input, according to STLtoday.com. She further described the planned location as sitting right between two churches where families gather and worship.
Churches Near the Sculpture
Hanaway had not said what, if any, specific action her office planned to take regarding the installation, the outlet reported.
The Gateway Foundation, for its part, pushed back on the idea that the work does not belong near religious institutions. “Our commitment to art for its own sake and freedom of expression affirms a place for this work alongside the neighborhood's religious institutions,” the foundation said in a statement reported by Fox2Now.
Visitors See the Statue
Jenna Redel reportedly traveled two hours from Columbia, Missouri, to see the statue and also called it beautiful. Jorge Hill watched a crane lower the top half of the statue onto a grassy patch during installation, STLtoday.com reported.
A Statue With a Troubled Touring History
“Witness” was first exhibited in New York's Madison Square Park in 2023 before a critically acclaimed five-month run there, according to The Art Newspaper. It then moved to the University of Houston in 2024, where Texas Right to Life called it “Satanic.” The figure’s lacy collar has been interpreted as an allusion to the collar former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wore.
The Houston stop ended badly: the statue was beheaded by a vandal early on July 8, 2024, during the power outages that followed Hurricane Beryl. The university said the damage was believed to be intentional and that police were investigating, per The Art Newspaper.
The Abortion Backdrop
Sikander has said her inspiration for the artwork was the spirit and grit of fighting for abortion access in the aftermath of the Supreme Court's 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade, according to Fox2Now. Missouri voters approved a reproductive-rights amendment in 2024, but the state is now weighing Amendment 3, a measure on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot that would repeal that 2024 amendment and restrict abortion access, according to The Beacon. Under the proposed measure, abortions would be allowed only in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, and in cases of rape or incest the procedure would have to occur no later than 12 weeks' gestation, per ABC News. If approved, the amendment would also let state lawmakers pass further legislation regulating abortion access, and it would place a constitutional ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, according to St. Louis Public Radio.
For now, “Witness” stands at Rung for Women in Fox Park, amid a dispute between a state official who has criticized its installation and a nonprofit that says the sculpture reflects the women it serves.
