Gilded nude Trump statue goes on display inside European Parliament
by The Washington Times AI News Desk · The Washington TimesA gilded statue of President Trump, shown nude and perched on the shoulders of a smaller man, went on display Tuesday inside the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. It is the latest stop for a satirical protest piece its creator says targets Mr. Trump’s climate and foreign policies.
Titled “The Orange Plague,” the work by Danish sculptor Jens Galschiot stands more than 8 feet tall and is made of copper coated in 23-karat gold. Mr. Trump holds a set of scales in one hand and an oversized golf club in the other while sitting on a man who appears to strain under his weight. The artist also calls the piece “King of Injustice.”
An inscription on the pedestal speaks in the voice of the “King of Injustice,” who says he sits on a man’s back and will do anything to help him except step down.
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Danish lawmaker Per Clausen, who sits with the left-wing group The Left, invited the artist’s studio to show the work in the building. Mr. Clausen said he is not worried about how Mr. Trump might react, adding that anyone unable to tolerate the display has no place on the world stage. The statue is on view during this week’s plenary session.
Mr. Galschiøt told EFE he believes Mr. Trump is undermining Western values such as free expression and respect for private property. He suggested the smaller figure could stand for the European Union. The sculptor said the work was inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Emperor’s New Clothes.”
Lasse Galschiot, the studio’s director and, according to ANSA, a co-creator with his brother, said the group brought the statue to last year’s U.N. climate summit in Brazil. He argued that Mr. Trump had pressured countries there with tariff threats and trade wars. He described the piece as a statement on how powerful actors use their strength to crush others.
The statue has also appeared at the Munich Security Conference, EFE reported. Euronews reported that it was shown at “hands off Greenland” demonstrations in Copenhagen earlier this year. Euronews also reported that Mr. Galschiot printed about 20,000 miniature copies, handed to visitors and Parliament staff, and plans to exhibit the work next month at COP31, the U.N. climate conference in Antalya, Turkey, scheduled for Nov. 9-20.
As of the exhibit’s opening, Mr. Trump had not publicly commented on the statue.
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