Socrates Sculpture Park is one of the only art spaces in New York City that was permitted to stay open to the public through this pandemic. The staff at Socrates has put on an exhibition program that could not have possibly foreseen the global health, economic and political crises of 2020, but is prescient nonetheless. The current exhibition, Monuments Now, opened in mid-July when heated debates had resurfaced over national monuments in connection to the Black Lives Matter movement.
People are talking about, and in some cases taking action against, heroic monuments that are racist and representative of biased histories. These critiques are not new but these protests have revived the sentiment that it is unacceptable to hold these monuments in high regard. In response, some governmental and institutional bodies have acquiesced with the removal of Confederate statues and flags, which are blatant symbols of oppression. Corporations have also agreed to retire brand names that are overtly racist and insensitive...