“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”
These iconic words are etched in bronze and mounted on the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal; taken from the 1883 poem by American poet, Emma Lazarus. From 1880s to the early 1920s, the Statue of Liberty was seen as a symbol of hope, holding her beacon high for new migrants setting their foot onto the American soil and yearning for the economic opportunities, religious and political liberty the land promises.
The copper statue itself was a giftfrom the people of France to the people of the United States of America, underscoring its significance in international relations between America and the world.
As the eyes of the world now looks on to America and its internal state of affairs, “Hidden Liberty” becomes a reflection piece to remind the world of the meaning of the glowing light that pierces through the heavy fog of New York Bay. Not intended to be a polarising piece, “Hidden Liberty” instead shifts the focus centrally to Lady Liberty herself – who is she holding the light for now?
