Another mysterious anti-Trump sculpture appears on the National Mall

Washington Post

3 hours ago

The mystery artists responsible for a statue on the National Mall mocking President Donald Trump last week have done it again — this time with a multimedia work taking aim at comments the White House made about them.
On Thursday morning, a replica of an old-school television set showing clips of Trump dancing was set up near Third Street NW in direct view of the U.S. Capitol. The set displays a 15-second silent video loop of Trump's signature slow-motion shimmy from various times and locations.
In one, Trump is dancing next to multimillionaire and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was charged with sex trafficking minors in 2019 and killed himself while awaiting trial. A bouncy jingle from an ice cream truck parked nearby provided an unintentional soundtrack.
If there is a theme, it is a golden one. The television is spray-painted gold, as is a replica of a bald eagle with wings outstretched that sits atop the television. Ivy, also spray-painted gold, bedecks the display.
A plaque at the base of the statue reads, ''In the United States of America you have the freedom to display your so-called 'art,' no matter how ugly it is.' — The Trump White House, June 2025.'
That quote is taken from a comment the White House sent to The Washington Post last week in response to an 8-foot-tall artwork titled 'Dictator Approved,' which depicts a gold-painted hand with a distinctive thumbs-up crushing the crown of the Statue of Liberty. The base of that statue included quotes from authoritarian leaders praising Trump, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
The purpose of the new video art installation is 'to demonstrate freedom of speech and artistic expression using political imagery,' according to the organizer's permit application to the National Park Service. It is set up on the Mall in the same place where the Dictator Approved statue was placed last week and is permitted to stay there until 8 p.m. Sunday.
The White House was not amused.
'Wow, these liberal activists masquerading as 'artists,' are dumber than I thought!' White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson wrote Thursday in statement sent to The Post. 'I've tricked them into taking down their ugly sculpture and replacing it with a beautiful video of the President's legendary dance moves that will bring joy and inspiration to all tourists traversing our National Mall. Thank you for your attention to this matter!'
'Maybe they will put this on their next sculpture,' Jackson added.
(If so, these sculptures may have to get bigger).
Exactly who is behind the artworks remains a mystery. The new television installment and the 'Dictator Approved' statue are similar in style and materials to protest artworks placed in the District, Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon, last fall.
However, no individual or group has publicly claimed responsibility for those pieces, which included a bronze-painted tiki torch and a replica of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's desk with a pile of poop on it that paid satirical tribute to the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Mary Harris was listed as the applicant for permits issued this year but no contact information was provided. And the name may be another symbolic distraction. Mary Harris Jones is the name of legendary union organizer and labor leader Mother Jones, who died in Silver Spring, Md. in 1930.
Few visitors braved the early afternoon heat Thursday to see the new work. Tasnim Mokhtar, 25, was taking a family friend visiting from Texas on a sightseeing tour when they happened upon it.
Mokhtar, who lives in Northern Virginia, said she thought the installation was 'a great way to raise consciousness. Not just about steps Trump has taken but how it's affecting our culture as a whole.'
D.C. resident Julianne Brienza stopped by on her bike to take a peek. She had heard about the previous artworks but didn't know there was a new one.
'Nothing is even-keeled right now,' said Brienza, 50, as she shaded her eyes from the fake gold gleam. 'So it's good to see something and feel reaffirmed about something we're all facing. Whether we're Republicans or Democrats.'
But Brienza wasn't sure the image would change any minds. 'Does this really do anything? I don't know, I don't know.'