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Melania Trump’s Statue Burned Down in Your Daily Moment of Schadenfreude

The wooden statue was located near her hometown of Sevnica, Slovenia.
Image of Chelsea Steiner
Chelsea Steiner
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Published: Jul 9, 2020 12:46 pm

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If you’re looking for apt metaphors for the Trumps, a wooden sculpture of First Lady Melania Trump has burned down. The statue, which is located close to her hometown of Sevnica, Slovenia, was torched on the 4th of July by vandals/heroes, nearly a year after it was installed. Brad Downey, a Berlin-based American artist, had commissioned the sculpture from local artist Ales Zupevc. Zupevc used a chainsaw to sculpt the less than flattering likeness from a living linden tree trunk.

Downey has since had the charred husk of the statue removed. “I want to know why they did it,” said Downey, who has filed a police report about the incident. Downey had hoped that the sculpture would foster conversation around immigration, given that Melania is an immigrant married to a virulently anti-immigration president. Downey has said that he would like to interview the vandals for his upcoming documentary.

So far no suspects are in custody. Whoever vandalized the statue is likely responding to the monument battle that is currently unfolding in America and across the world. In January, a 26-foot statue of Donald Trump was burned in Slovenia. Apparently the statue had a fist in the air and a mechanism that would open its mouth to reveal sharp teeth. Terrifying.

As Confederate statues are torn down by protesters and removed by local governments, Trump and his cronies have latched onto the issue, with Trump threatening to extend punishments for vandals. There are rumors that Trump wants to bring statues along on the campaign trail as props for his rambling speeches.

Of course, the torching of Melania’s statue was fodder for plenty of jokes on social media. And come on with that statue: even before it burned, it was next-level bonkers. Was it intentionally an eyesore? I don’t know readers, I did not go to art school.

And yet, I cannot stop staring at her wooden, haunted eyes, her slash of a grimace. Her hand held up, frozen in faux patriotism. Is this statue crying out for help to an unhearing Slovenian forest?

What is Wooden Melania thinking? And is it anything deeper and more complex than the slightly less wooden real Melania?

Burn it all down.

(via CBS News, image: screencap/Washington Post)

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Author
Image of Chelsea Steiner
Chelsea Steiner
Chelsea was born and raised in New Orleans, which explains her affinity for cheesy grits and Britney Spears. An pop culture journalist since 2012, her work has appeared on Autostraddle, AfterEllen, and more. Her beats include queer popular culture, film, television, republican clownery, and the unwavering belief that 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' is the greatest movie ever made. She currently resides in sunny Los Angeles, with her husband, 2 sons, and one poorly behaved rescue dog. She is a former roller derby girl and a black belt in Judo, so she is not to be trifled with. She loves the word “Jewess” and wishes more people used it to describe her.
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