Joel Shapiro's Sculpture Removed from Kennedy Center Campus
In the early hours of September 2, crews hired by the National Park Service took down Joel Shapiro's 2019 artwork 'Blue' from the REACH campus at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. This 24-foot painted aluminum piece was among the ten original installations when the REACH debuted in September 2019. The removal was executed without any public announcement, and the Kennedy Center has yet to clarify the reasons behind it. This action caused traffic delays on the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway. The future site for the sculpture will be decided by the Joel Shapiro and Ellen Phelan Foundation. The group Hands Off the Arts criticized the removal, associating it with the Trump administration's stance on the arts.
Key facts
- Joel Shapiro's sculpture 'Blue' was removed from the Kennedy Center's REACH campus on September 2.
- The sculpture was installed in 2019 as part of the REACH expansion's inaugural artworks.
- The work is 24 feet (7.3 meters) tall and made of painted aluminum.
- The removal was carried out by crews contracted by the National Park Service.
- No prior public notice was given by the Kennedy Center.
- The next location will be determined by the Joel Shapiro and Ellen Phelan Foundation.
- The removal caused traffic congestion on the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway.
- Hands Off the Arts coalition criticized the removal as part of the Trump administration's offensive against the arts.
- Donald Trump assumed the chairmanship of the Kennedy Center in February 2025.
- A federal judge blocked adding Trump's name to the institution, but a new lawsuit seeks to change that.
Entities
Artists
- Joel Shapiro
- Ellen Phelan
- Joe Flood
- Robert Barry
- Robert Littman
- Leslie Miller
Institutions
- Kennedy Center
- National Park Service
- Joel Shapiro and Ellen Phelan Foundation
- Hands Off the Arts
- Washington Post
- John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
- National Gallery of Art
- Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
- The New York Times
- The Atlantic
- Museum of Modern Art
- University of Colorado Boulder
- New York University
- Peace Corps
- Hofstra University
- Whitney Museum of American Art
- Paula Cooper Gallery
- Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago
- Whitechapel Gallery
- Des Moines Art Center
- Baltimore Museum of Art
- Centre for the Fine Arts Miami
- Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture
- American Academy of Arts and Letters
- Grenfell Press
- Artlyst
Locations
- Washington, D.C.
- United States
- Washington, DC
- Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway
- New York City
- India
- Colorado
- Boulder
- Chicago
- London
- Des Moines
- Baltimore
- Miami
- Manhattan
- Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway NW
- Ohio Dr SW
- Parkway Dr NW
- E St on-ramp
- F St NW
Sources
- Dasartes —
- Hyperallergic —
- Artlyst —