Damien Hirst's controversial statue erected in Ilfracombe, despite objections
Damien Hirst’s controversial statue of a naked, pregnant woman wielding a sword has taken her place on a Devon seafront.
The 65ft bronze monument has been given on a 20-year loan by the artist to the coastal town of Ilfracombe in North Devon.
Opinions are divided over whether the 25-tonne “Verity” would be an asset to the town, with some describing the statue as “a monstrosity” and “an affront to public decency”.
But crowds arrived shortly after sunrise yesterday to brave the elements and welcome Verity, the statue having spent the last few days being assembled in a harbourside car park.
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The effort to hoist her into place was nearly felled by the gusty conditions as winds whipped around the bronze icon. But, as the sun was beginning to dip over the horizon, engineers finally hoisted the statue and positioned her in place.
Ilfracombe mayor Lynda Courtnadge said: “There was initial curiosity and now there is history in the making. It was a unique opportunity to see a statue put in place by the most successful living artist.
“We are very fortunate and very appreciative of the loan of the statue by Damien Hirst –
we are very grateful.”
Hirst, who owns a restaurant in Ilfracombe and lives in North Devon, described Verity as “a modern-day allegory for truth and justice”. The figure’s stance is taken from Edgar Degas’s late-19th century Little Dancer of Fourteen Years and is referenced by Hirst in his earlier bronze, Virgin Mother, from 2005.
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