Multiple proposals

Rachel Feinstein (b. 1971, Defiance, Arizona; lives in New York, New York)

Joan (pictured above)
Joan is a contemporary equestrian sculpture, handmade in appearance to construe a feeling of vulnerability and childishness. Inspired by the 1874 gilded bronze sculpture of Joan of Arc near the Louvre in Paris, Joan, the female rider sharply contrasts with the all-male power symbol of her European counterparts, while the handmade approach is inviting rather than intimidating.

Rococo Cart
Rococo Cart is an everyday golf cart decorated with a white porcelain-like maximalist rococo sculpture. Feinstein sees a darker side to the stereotypically upbeat kitsch of the rococo style, interpreting instead an overwhelming wish to control nature and others. Feinstein draws on the joy of parade floats and the feeling they evoke of being both viewer and participant. The white porcelain-like finish on the Rococo Cart will offer stark opposition to the buildings and objects around it.

Castle on the Rock
17-foot sculpture of green jasper features a road, castle, and interior ring shape in gold leaf, recalling the faraway vista of a castle on a hill that traveling visitors would have seen when approaching a European town during the Renaissance. While finishing a commissioned Judaica work for the Jewish Museum inspired by the traditional “marriage ring” of a Jewish bride, the artist started to envision rings that would incorporate castles and had a dream of a small gold castle on top of a piece of Malachite with a gold road leading to it.

Dorothy
Dorothy is a 22-foot-tall cast aluminum sculpture, inspired by a Matthias Grunewald drawing of Saint Dorothy, the patron saint of florists, and the Virgin of El Panecillo, a monument in Quito, Ecuador made of 7,500 inlaid cast aluminum squares, the largest aluminum sculpture in the world. The figure’s open aluminum basket also serves as a bird bath when filled with rainwater.

Spats
Spats is inspired by a runway model wearing “spats”-style high-heeled shoes, a top hat, and a lingerie suit and tails; various colors are mixed by hand and “smeared” on the figure as a way to disrupt the idea of female perfection. The 22-foot figure is a modern-day Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, who can be seen as humorous or menacing depending on the viewer as they travel with the traffic on Tenth Avenue.