*Witness* (2023) after the vandalism on 7/8/24. Photo courtesy of the University of Houston Staff.

As Hurricane Beryl raged through Texas on the morning of July 8, a man took the time to go to the University of Houston and behead Shahzia Sikander’s acclaimed 2023 work, Witness.

To say that this is an appalling act is an understatement. It is a cruel and pointed statement. In a recent op-ed in the Washington Post, Sikander wrote:

…I have chosen not to repair it. I want to leave it beheaded, for all to see. The work is now a witness to the fissures in our country.

This act is a culmination of tension surrounding Witness that started when the piece was installed in February. Originally, an artist talk with Sikander was scheduled for February 28. The University of Houston cowardly cancelled the event, bowing to the conservative, anti-abortion group, Texas Right to Life. The group had protested the work calling it a “satanic abortion idol” and launched a petition on February 7 to remove the statue.

In the aftermath of the July 8 beheading, there were several days when the University went against the artist’s wishes and covered the statue. Sikander has led with dignity and power in her responses to the University, the public, and her detractors—”Protect Artists’ voices!”

In sweeping defiance of the cancelled talk, Sikander launched a fundraiser on April 24 for Planned Parenthood in Texas and New York. With the help of Pace Prints, Dogwig Printing, and Love & Victory, Sikander created t-shirts. The front says ”Protect Artists’ voices” and the back shows the head of Witness. She followed this up with an Artists at Risk Connection panel discussion on June 8, titled Is Censorship Discriminatory? (The answer is yes it is).

All of this brings us to July, a tumultuous month for the entire globe. On July 2, in Linz, Austria, a statue of the Virgin Mary giving birth to Jesus was beheaded. Six days later, in the midst of the earliest category 5 hurricane on record, Witness would suffer the same fate. Notable assassinations (and attempts) shook the globe as the US barrels towards a disastrous presidential election. Tempers are flaring as extreme heat touches every part of the world. It is not lost on us, dear reader, that these struggles of censorship, violence, and the climate crisis are all intertwined. We look forward to Sikander’s next statue, which we know will shine just as bright as Witness.

*Witness* (2023) in Madison Square Park. image courtesy of Shahzia Sikander Studio.

Timeline of Events

January 17, 2023: Havah… to breathe, air, life debuts. Witness is featured at Madison Square Park Conservancy and NOW at the Courthouse of the Appellate Division, First Department of the Supreme Court of the State of New York on 25th street.
June 4, 2023: Havah… to breathe, air, life closes after rave reviews from the New York art world and beyond.
June 15-18, 2023: NOW on view at Art Basel in Switzerland.
September 7-10, 2023: NOW on view at the Platforms Section of The Armory Show at the Javits Center.
Early February 2024: The University of Houston invites the public to protest Witness.
February 7, 2024: Texas Right to Life launches a petition to have Witness removed from not just the Univeristy of Houston, but the state itself.
February 27, 2024: Artist talk with Sikander on Havah… to breathe, air, life is cancelled.
February 28, 2024: Witness officially begins its residence at the University of Houston.
April 2024: NOW on view at the Venice Biennale.
April 24, 2024: Sikander launches a fundraiser for Planned Parenthood in Texas and New York.
May 18, 2024: NOW opens at the Newark Museum of Art.
June 8, 2024: Sikander participates in an Artists at Risk Connection panel discussion on censorship.
July 8, 2024: Witness is beheaded during Hurricane Beryl.
July 12, 2024: Against Sikander’s wishes, the University of Houston keeps Witness covered.
July 17, 2024: Security cam footage is released of Witness being beheaded.

A Timeline Leading to the Beheading of Shahzia Sikander’s ‘Witness’

The Exhibitions We Miss from 2023