The Facts
Huma Bhabha's monumental bronze sculpture 'We Come in Peace' (2018) is now on view in the newly revitalized sculpture garden at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, DC. The towering, many-faced figure stands more than 12 feet tall and was originally conceived as a rooftop commission for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Bhabha first hand-carved the work in cork and Styrofoam before casting it in bronze, drawing the title from Robert Wise's 1951 film 'The Day the Earth Stood Still.' The sculpture is embedded within a long sculptural tradition extending from ancient Eastern statuary through Western classicism to modernism.
The Signal
The installation marks a significant addition to the Hirshhorn's outdoor collection, placing Bhabha's work in dialogue with the museum's broader program of contemporary sculpture. 'We Come in Peace' probes questions about the familiar and unfamiliar, the alien and the native—themes that resonate in the public space of a national museum's garden. For collectors and curators, the work exemplifies Bhabha's ability to merge ancient sculptural references with contemporary concerns, reinforcing her standing as a leading figure in post-war and contemporary sculpture.
- Artists: Huma Bhabha
- People: Huma Bhabha
- Museums: Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
- Locations: Washington, DC
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