Danh Vo
2011-2016
Copper
200 x 95 x 260 cm
Winsing Arts Collection

Danh Vo
2011-2016
Copper
200 x 95 x 260 cm
Winsing Arts Collection
Vō launched an ambitious project in 2011, when he made a replica of the Statue of Liberty with a scale of 1:1, breaking her up into more than 300 pieces for exhibition in different countries. Erected in 1886, the statue stands near the Hudson Estuary on Liberty Island. Over the years, she has become a landmark for many immigrants when they arrived at the "land of opportunity." As a symbol of freedom and escape from tyranny, she later became an iconic structure in the United States. Some people also interpreted her as representing American power and money politics. His work titled "We The People" is the opening phrase of the Preamble to the United States Constitution of 1787, and again, both proclaim the meaning of liberty. Moreover, Vō divided the statue of liberty, intending to break down politics, explore the power of money, and define freedom.
The Statue of Liberty, designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, made by French workers, and paid by the people of the United States, was a gift of friendship to America from France in 1776, while Danh Vō's work was conceived in Germany and produced by a manufacturer in Shanghai, China. The artist was surprised by the fragility of this famous monument while studying previous methods of making it, and he also used previous techniques to produce the replica out of a 2-millimeter piece of copper. He does not intend to give the statue a specific new meaning, but rather to give the viewer a chance to re-examine the sculpture and the ideals it represents from a personal perspective.
