What: Tracey Emin’s Roman Standard
Where: Petrosino Square (Spring and Lafayette Streets, NYC)
When: May 10 to September 8, 2013

This summer, Nolita’s Petrosino Square in New York will feature Roman Standard, a thirteen-foot-tall pole with a solitary bronze bird perched at the top. From the ground, the towering sculpture by Tracey Emin, sponsored by Art Production Fund, White Cube, and Lehmann Maupin in collaboration with NYC Parks & Recreation, is so lifelike that onlookers may mistake it for a real bird. According to the artist, the figure is a sign of “hope, faith, and spirituality” that should serve as a source of reflection. The showcase will be on view from May 10 to September 8, 2013.

Emin pulls inspiration from the militaristic representations of traditional Roman Standards and desires to demonstrate the power that an outwardly unimportant creature can personify through stature and space. In an attempt to design a public display full of magic and mystery instead of oppression and supremacy, the artist suggests that successful works of this variety can be inspiring without being monumental.

Roman Standard is Emin’s first public art project and was commissioned by BBC in 2005 as a part of the art05 festival. Following a lucrative Times Square appearance in February, the Petrosino Square exhibit marks her second public project in the New York City. She is a renowned contemporary artist and is globally recognized for her brutally honest approach to art.

In concurrence with Roman Standard, Lehmann Maupin will host the two-part installation, Tracey Emin: I Followed You To The Sun. Highlighting more than 100 original works, the exhibition will be on view through June 22, 2013 at both of its New York galleries. The show will expose Emin’s most personal tales.