A statue of 17th-century slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol, England has been replaced with one of a Black Lives Matter protester.
Protesters in Bristol gained worldwide attention in June when footage circulated online of them toppling the statue of Edward Colston. In the footage, the statue can be seen being toppled over from its plinth with rope, and in a subsequent video, it can be seen being dumped into the city's river.
You can watch the dramatic moment the statue was toppled here:Now, the city of Bristol has a new figure being celebrated on the plinth. The new sculpture depicts Jen Reid, who was photographed standing atop the plinth with her fist raised after the Colston statue had been toppled.
In a press release shared on Wednesday, the artist behind the sculpture, Marc Quinn, said it "is an embodiment and amplification of Jen's ideas and experiences, and of the past, present and her hope for a better future."
"My friend ... showed me a picture on Instagram of Jen standing on the plinth in Bristol with her fist in a Black Power salute," he said, per CNN.
One Twitter account shared several pictures of the statue, including one with Jen Reid posing in front of it, along with the caption, "The statue of slave trader Edward Colston has been replaced in Bristol this morning with a sculpture of Black Lives Matter protestor Jen Reid. Brilliant news,"
"My first, instant thought was how incredible it would be to make a sculpture of her, in that instant." Quinn continued.
"It is such a powerful image, of a moment I felt had to be materialized, forever. I contacted Jen via social media to discuss the idea of the sculpture and she told me she wanted to collaborate."
Quinn intends the work, which is officially titled A Surge of Power (Jen Reid) 2020, to be temporary. Per CNN, he said that he had not received permission from authorities to erect the statue. If it is removed, Quinn said that it would be sold with profits donated to charities chosen by Reid, which promote including black history in school curricula.