Trafalgar in blue.
Trafalgar Square gets a new figure this September as
Tschabalala Self’s ‘Lady in Blue’ takes her place on the Fourth Plinth. Unveiled on 10 September, the work becomes the 16th commission in a programme that began in 1998, following Teresa Margolles’s ‘Mil Veces un Instante (A Thousand Times in an Instant)’.
Self conceived the figure as a contemporary ‘everywoman’, a young metropolitan woman walking forward with purpose. Made in bronze, the sculpture is patinated in a vivid lapis lazuli blue, taking its colour from a pigment prized since antiquity. In place of the historic figure traditionally expected on a plinth, Self places an everyday woman in Trafalgar Square, casting her as a contemporary symbol of London and the people who move through it every day.
The New York-based artist works across painting, printmaking and sculpture, with the female figure a longstanding focus of her practice. London has particular significance for Self as well – the artist has spoken about the city supporting important milestones in her career, including her first institutional exhibition.
‘Lady in Blue’ will also be one of the works to seek out during the fifth edition of
London Sculpture Week from 19 – 27 September. The citywide celebration connects the Fourth Plinth with
Frieze Sculpture,
East Bank,
Sculpture in the City and
The Line, encouraging Londoners to encounter and engage with sculpture beyond gallery walls.
The Fourth Plinth has spent decades giving London something to talk about, and Self’s blue figure looks set to continue the conversation.
The Wick is excited to be a media partner for London Sculpture Week 2026.
