Workers remove the sculpture “Blue” by artist Joel Shapiro on the grounds of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
\n\nThe Kennedy Center took down a sculpture known as “Blue” Wednesday, the latest change to the cultural and performing arts center that stirred some pushback in President Donald Trump’s second term.
\n\nThe sculpture, a tall, blue stick figure poised in action — as if to kick a ball or, from a different angle, having just kicked one — was designed by sculptor Joel Shapiro and installed in 2019.
\n\nThe removal follows a longer-running saga with the Kennedy Center, where the Trump-aligned board is fighting in court for the right to plaster the president’s name on the historic institution. It falls within a broader effort to reshape Washington to Trump’s liking, including demolishing the White House’s East Wing to build a ballroom, a proposed triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery and a renovated golf course.
\n\nShapiro, known for breathing life into otherwise minimalist stick figures, described “Blue” in a video posted to the Kennedy Center’s YouTube years ago as being “about action and risk and performance and energy. It’s a…
Original source: https://apnews.com/business