Where did the mysterious poop statue in Washington DC come from?
For many Americans, the horrors of January 6th, 2021, following the election of former President Joe Biden, were slowly starting to evaporate into a memory of a bad dream. That is, until last year, in October, a gigantic bronze statue of the poop emoji appeared on the National Mall in downtown Washington DC. People were utterly bewildered because the provenance and identity of the artist were totally unknown. Plus, why now?
The base of the statue was a replica of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s desk. On it was a landline phone, files and post-its, which were supposed to replicate her desk in the Capitol building that was attacked on the infamous day Donald Trump’s supporters stormed it to overturn the elections.
The sculpture was not an act of vandalism or protest; on the contrary, it had been approved by the National Park Service, and they extended its display until November 6th, 2024, conveniently a few days after Donald Trump was elected president. Indeed, as federal land, the National Mall is just as much a forum where citizens can exercise their Constitutional rights to free speech and assembly as any other piece of public land in America.
The statue was strategically placed right opposite the Capitol building and, from some angles, the swirly drop of poop, that looks more like a Mr Whippy than actual feces, outlines the iconic dome of the building. The intent behind The Resolute Desk is still ambiguous, with visitors online and in-person reacting very differently. The clues to the motives of the sculptor are ever so misleading.
One plaque reads: “This memorial honours the brave men and women who broke into the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, to loot, urinate and defecate throughout those hallowed halls in order to overturn an election. President Trump celebrates these heroes of January 6th as ‘unbelievable patriots’ and ‘warriors.’ This monument stands testament to their daring sacrifice and lasting legacy”.
At first, one is convinced that an artist in favour of the January 6th attacks created the sculpture to celebrate the rioters. After all, there’s a massive poop sitting on Nancy Pelosi’s desk, one of the highest-ranking politicians the White House has had. On the other hand, many have interpreted the piece as complete satire. Could it be making fun of the protestors, one of whom grossly actually defecated on Pelosi’s desk? Is it trying to fool the rioters and those who support them into thinking that this is a statue to commemorate them, but actually it is making fun of them, equating them to that exact poop swirl.
While the mystery makes it even more captivating, one thing is for sure: the perfectly shaped blob of faeces makes it almost pretty to look at and hard to take seriously. But the comical nature of the statue cannot obscure the tragedy that took place on the day of the attack. The riot had enormous consequences, not just on the Capitol building itself, which recorded $1.5million in damages and saw the rioters smashing windows, destroying objects and urinating and defecating inside. It also created an extremely tense political divide in America and beyond.
Additionally, the riot had a detrimental impact on many of the police officers and security guards who were working that day. A Capitol police officer who had fought back the rioters died the following day, and several others who had been on duty died by suicide in the ensuing months from the trauma they endured.
Although the statues made no acknowledgement of these tragic events, it definitely made a dramatic polemical statement that got people talking about a giant poop emoji.
