Since January of this year, Donald Trump has been officially serving as President of the United States – for the second time. By his side, as always, is his wife Melania – although during this second term she has kept a rather low profile and is reported to have spent little time at the White House so far. The First Lady first became widely known to the public during her husband's first term in office.
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In her native country, Slovenia, a statue was erected near her former hometown of Sevnica in her honour. However, news of the artwork’s theft is now attracting attention. It is not the first time, it seems, that a depiction of the US First Lady has proven unpopular.
Wooden statue previously set on fire
In 2019, a wooden sculpture of the President’s wife was first erected in a field near the town of Sevnica. It depicted Melania Trump – who occasionally makes headlines for her fashion choices – in life-size, wearing the blue dress she wore to her husband’s first inauguration in 2017. Even back then, unknown individuals set the statue on fire. This was reported by British outlet The Daily Mail, as well as German newspapers Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger and BILD.
In 2020, a bronze replica of the former wooden statue was finally installed – but this too has now reportedly been stolen. Unknown perpetrators are said to have sawn off the sculpture at the ankles and taken it away. According to current reports, the incident was first reported on 13 May, and investigations have been ongoing since.
Artwork as criticism
That the statue of the First Lady was not particularly popular among locals has long been no secret. 'Even when the sculpture was first erected, the reactions from local media, (…) residents of Sevnica, and many other Slovenians were extremely negative', the local authority stated, according to BILD. Nonetheless, efforts were made to approach the matter with respect.
The statue is the work of Brad Downey, an American artist who stated that his portrayal of the US First Lady was intended as a critique of the Trump administration’s immigration policy – after all, his own wife is an immigrant. Melania, who had already spoken after Trump’s first term about a possible return to the White House, has not visited her homeland in decades.
This article has been translated from Gentside DE.
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Sources used:
Daily Mail: Bronze statue of Melania Trump is hacked off at the ankles and stolen in her homeland Slovenia - five years after wooden version was torched
Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger: Unbeliebte First Lady: Bronzestatue von Melania Trump abgesägt – Skulptur verschwunden
BILD-Zeitung: Statue war unbeliebt: Melania Trump abgesägt
