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A bronze statue of the Greek mythological character Medusa is causing a stir before it has even been installed in front of a New York City courthouse.
The seven-foot-tall statue, based on the 2008 sculpture by Luciano Garbati, depicts a reimagined version of the classic Greek tale and has come to take on new meaning for proponents of the #MeToo movement. But some physical aspects of the artwork as well as its location across from the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse have sparked debates across social media.
“The seven-foot bronze sculpture inverts the narrative of Medusa, portraying her in a moment of somberly empowered self-defense,” the Medusa With the Head project announced in a press release about the upcoming installation of the statue.
The statue is set to make its appearance in the park across from the downtown Manhattan courthouse where disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was tried.
correction: unveiling is tuesday, not this weekend! but in my defense, time is a flat circle
— Rachel Holliday Smith (@rachelholliday) October 9, 2020
Garbati’s Medusa re-imagined the myth about the woman who was turned into a monster and relates directly to the 16th Century bronze masterpiece Perseus with the Head of Medusa by Benvenuto Cellini.
According to the MWTH project website:
In Ovid’s Metamorphosis, Medusa was a maiden in the temple of Athena, who was stalked and raped by Poseidon. Athena, in a rage, banishes and curses Medusa with a monstrous head of snakes and a gaze which turns men to stone. Medusa is herself blamed and punished for the crime of which she was the victim; she is cast away as a monster and then with the cruel assistance of Athena and Poseidon, eventually is hunted-down and beheaded by the epic hero Perseus, who displays her head as a trophy on his shield.
The new version of Medusa gave a powerful symbol for the #MeToo movement, as it shows the mythological character holding a sword and the head of Perseus instead, though it was actually Poseidon who raped her.
“This narrative of victim-shaming in stories of sexual violence echoes through time, and into the present day ‘me too’ movement,” the MWTH project team noted. “In 2018, Garbati posted a photograph of his original sculpture to social media. This re-imagined Medusa went viral and became a symbol of resistance worldwide, inspiring thousands of women to reach out and share their own stories.”
Luciano Garbati, the sculptor behind quite possibly my favorite piece of art ever (Medusa with the head of Perseus) just announced that he received permission from the City of NY to install a bronze version of her for the public to enjoy! I AM SO EXCITED. pic.twitter.com/PGA9amtNEu
— Marlene the Tired (@marlene) August 21, 2020
But news of erecting the statue next week sparked some questions on social media where some wondered if the location of the piece would send the wrong message.
Pretty sure nobody thought through what it means to enshrine an extrajudicial revenge killing in front of a courthouse. https://t.co/SwegNYUkOu
— Nathaniel Friedman (@freedarko) October 9, 2020
Sometimes a statue is just a statue but when that Medusa one is supposed to be MeToo-inspired social commentary…it opens the door for talking about what else it could mean.
— Nathaniel Friedman (@freedarko) October 9, 2020
In another slightly odd line of Twitter discussion, there seemed to be one glaring issue with the statue.
Hey folks are you in the market for a book that describes this statue as having a “curiously blank pubis”? Would you like it to go on to offer a slightly less Swimsuit Edition image of Medusa? Just uhhhhhhhhh watch this space I guess https://t.co/eEr55wUL04
— Jess Zimmerman (@j_zimms) October 9, 2020
There should be tiny snakes down there but they’re cowards
— Jaclyn: Be Gay, Use The Force (@Jbandos) October 9, 2020
I don’t have an OFFICIAL position on whether Medusa had snake pubes but because in Ovid the snake hair was a transformation specifically of her crowning glory, and few people glory in their pubes, I’m inclined to think she had regular pubes. She definitely did not wax
— Jess Zimmerman (@j_zimms) October 9, 2020
Me outside the sculptor’s house at 4AM banging two dustbin lids together: WHERE ARE HER SNUBES, LUCIANO? HER SNAKE PUBES, YOU COWARD!! https://t.co/VnWIBbmd03
— Colette ⛈️ (@MedusaDolorosa) June 29, 2018
But many others shared a collective eyeroll over the #MeToo connection.
Yep! A naked sculpture of a Medusa just screams #metoo. The statue is beautiful, but to attach it to the #metoo movement is ridiculous. It had to be a man who did this. I can’t see any decent woman using this statue as a #metoo symbol.
— Vérité #BidenHarris2020 (@dominus655) October 9, 2020
Yes, it is ridiculous. If you want her to be a symbol of female empowerment, put some clothes on her. Put her in clothes and a naked Perseus body at her feet and then we’ve got some real empowerment.
— Jeanthejust (@Jeanthejust) October 10, 2020
I’m a survivor, and this is not “me too.” If she beheaded a character who raped her, then that’d be on theme, at least. Killing a man who’s completely unrelated to the violence committed against her is just… mindless lashing out. It’s not even retribution, let alone justice.
— ☂️Astramentha (@Mynta) October 9, 2020
As someone who studied Latin at a young age, which included Greek mythology, this is alarming. Good that classical art and sculpture is happening, but changing mythology to suit current political views, teaching people incorrect history, is not great. Yet, such is art!
— Beanie_Benosa (@BeanieBenosa) October 9, 2020
Did they miss the point where POSEIDON raped Medusa, not Perseus?
Why are virtue warriors always so pathologically miseducated?— Uncomfortable Brain (@uncomfybrain) October 9, 2020
Ignoring that the myth of Athena turning Medusa into a hideous monster as punishment for being raped by Poseidon was something that Ovid made up to showcase the capricious cruelty of the gods…not sure how this connects to the MeToo movement?
— Amanda Montagne (@AmandaMontagne) October 9, 2020
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
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