Sculpture of protester Jen Reid put in place of Colston taken down by Bristol City Council

Watch the moment the sculpture was taken down


A sculpture of an anti-racism protester which was put up in secret where the statue of slave trader Edward Colston once stood has been taken down.

During the early hours of Wednesday 15 July, a team of 10 people installed a figure of protester Jen Reid in Colston's place.

But just 24 hours later it was removed by council contractors.

The sculpture drew worldwide attention yesterday following its installation Credit: ITV News West Country

The news follows a statement by Bristol mayor, Marvin Rees, who said: “The sculpture had not been requested and permission was not given for it to be installed.

"The future of the plinth and what is installed on it must be decided by the people of Bristol."

Today a Bristol City Council spokesperson added: "This morning we removed the sculpture that was installed yesterday.

"It will be held at our museum for the artist to collect or donate to our collection."

If the statue is sold the profits are set to be donated to the Cargo Classroom initiative Credit: Cargo Classroom

If the statue is sold the profits will be donated to initiatives centered on encouraging a more diverse range of black history lessons in school.

The two initiatives that have been chosen by Mrs Reid are Cargo Classroom and the Black Curriculum. 

The sculpture, called 'A Surge of Power (Jen Reid) 2020' by artist Marc Quinn, captured the protester stood on top of the empty plinth during the protest last month with her fist in the air.

It replaced Edward Colston's statue after it was torn down and thrown into the harbour during protests in June.

The plinth has since remained empty - apart from a few hours when a mannequin of Jimmy Saville appeared before it was removed.


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