“The inspiration for Rumors of War is war—is an engagement with violence. Art and violence have for an eternity held a strong narrative grip with each other. Rumors of War attempts to use the language of equestrian portraiture to both embrace and subsume the fetishization of state violence. New York and Times Square in particular sit at the crossroads of human movement on a global scale. To have the Rumors of War sculpture presented in such a context lays bare the scope and scale of the project in its conceit to expose the beautiful and terrible potentiality of art to sculpt the language of domination.” – Kehinde Wiley

World renowned artist Kehinde Wiley completed a monumental bronze and stone sculpture titled Rumors of War as a direct response to confederate statues. His largest work to date, the statue depicts a young, African-American subject dressed in urban streetwear astride a massive horse. Temporarily installed on the bustling Broadway Plaza in New York City, the towering work stands at almost 8 meters tall and will later be permanently installed in Richmond, Virginia at the entrance to the Virginia Museum of Fine Art, a recent acquisition to the museum’s collection.

UAP’s role in this project included the design, engineering, casting, fabrication and installation of the bronze sculpture and plinth, working in close collaboration with the artist and his studio and utilizing a team of highly skilled makers and fine art casting processes. The work is a major collaboration between Times Square Arts in partnership with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and Sean Kelly, New York.