'It looks like papier mache!' Visitors to Trafalgar Square tell MailOnline they are far from convinced by latest sculpture on its famed fourth plinth What do YOU think of the fourth plinth? Email danny.gutmann@mailonline.co.
uk By Danny Gutmann and Stella Radeva Published: 11:25 BST, 20 September 2024 | Updated: 11:25 BST, 20 September 2024 e-mail 3 View comments For a quarter of a century, Trafalgar Square's fourth plinth has been the source of much discussion among tourists and locals alike. Built initially in 1841 to display a statue of William IV, it has more recently been home to a rolling series of temporary artworks, from the controversial to the confusing. Visitors to the famous landmark have been treated to a giant bronze thumb, a huge blue cockerel, and even a sculpture of a giant swirl of whipped cream topped with a cherry, a fly and a drone.
It was also home to Anthony Gormley's '100 days' project, when 2,400 members of the public stood atop the plinth for an hour each. And this year's offering? Hundreds of plaster face casts of transgender, non binary and gender non-conforming people which will disintegrate over time. The piece, named Mil Veces un Instante (A Thousand Times in an Instant), by Mexican artist Teresa Margolles features 726 faces and weighs a hefty 3.
3 metric tons, or just over 7,000lbs. The new design has been met with much furor on social media, as one user on X angrily quipped that it looks like a 'GCSE art project'. And within days of being unveil.