Photo credit: Nolwen Cifuentes for the New York Times
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) reported that renowned sculptor and printmaker Alison Saar has debuted her sculpture, Salon, in an inauguration ceremony in the public garden of the Champs-Elysées on June 23, 2024. The IOC and City of Paris commissioned the original bronze work in honor of the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Inspired by writer Gertrude Stein’s private living room that drew artists and thinkers from diverse backgrounds, Salon will remain publicly accessible as a permanent fixture in the gardens to spark ongoing dialogue.
“I am deeply honored to have been chosen to create the Olympic sculpture,” says Saar. “I hope that this work of art, a gift to Parisians, will become a unifying place and a symbol of the spirit of friendship and interconnection between cultures and across borders.”
In 2022, Saar donated her sculpture Swing Low, Harriet Tubman Memorial to the Samella Lewis Contemporary Art Collection at Scripps College. Click here to watch Scripps’ interview with the artist.