‘There Should Be Greater Transparency’: Public Art Becomes a Political Battleground

Artist Vinnie Bagwell could hear pandemonium erupting in the auditorium where seven hours of deliberation imploded as East Harlem residents clashed with New York City officials this past October over which artist’s proposal would be chosen to replace a 19th-century bronze statue honoring J. Marion Sims, the infamous “father of gynecology” who conducted experimental operations on female slaves without anesthesia. The meeting drew national attention when a video circulated showin