Arts & Culture

“to breathe, air, life” – NYC hosts new monuments to the feminine divine

Guest Contributor By |

NEW YORK – Last month, acclaimed artist and “citizen of the world” Shahzia Sikander unveiled a monumental installation in New York City that honors the feminine. Named, “Havah… to breathe, air, life,” this four-part multimedia body of work has evoked a range of different reactions to its divine feminine forms.

“Havah” was commissioned by the nonprofit Madison Square Park Conservancy, which stewards the land originally home to the Lenape people. It includes two figurative sculptures – one inside the park titled “Witness,” and one on top of the nearby Appellate Division Courthouse of New York State titled “NOW” ­– as well as a short animation from 2020 titled “Reckoning” and an augmented reality (AR) component through Snapchat titled “Apparition.”

In an obvious nod to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, both statues are graced with carved ornamentation around their necks that reflect the lacy collars and beaded jabots that she famously wore during her tenure on the Supreme Court of the United States.

Creative roots

For more than thirty years, Sikander has developed her skills in the Indo-Persian miniature painting tradition. Born in Pakistan, she earned a BFA from the National College of Arts in Lahore before moving to the U.S. in 1993 to pursue an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence.

She has won numerous awards for her artwork, including a Medal of Excellence (or Tamgha-e-Imtiaz) from the Pakistani government and a National Medal of Arts from the U.S. Department of State.

“I have always had an affinity for the anti-monument in my practice,” says Sikander in her artist statement.

Echoes of Satanic panic

The rights of women and others to make decisions about their own bodies rest at the heart of many arguments over politics and faith. These debates continue despite the U.S. being founded on the separation of church and state and the freedom of religion.

For nearly fifty years, the outcome of Roe v. Wade guaranteed access to abortion across the country. All of that changed in June 2022, however, when justices appointed by the former Republican president shifted the balance of the court. Overturning the longstanding ruling of Roe v. Wade now allows states to ban the right to terminate a pregnancy.

Samantha Kamman from The Christian Post describes Sikander’s work as a “Pagan idol to abortion,” while Nikolas Lanum from FOX News suggests that these sculptures are Satanic. Ross Douthat from The New York Times also implies the sculptures have a demonic presence.

Kamman gives no substance to her article, only a list of racially-motivated and misogynistic grievances from various people on social media. She also claims the two sculptures are actually depictions of RBG, who died in 2020, wearing her iconic ornamental jabot.

Lanum provides a similar list of comments from social media users, including a tweet from NYC Councilwoman Vicki Paladino calling it a “satanic golden medusa demon” and suggesting it should be removed. None of these writers understand the historical context for such creative imagery in the same way as the artist who made them.

Divine inspiration

Standing at eight feet tall, the larger-than-life bronze sculpture “NOW” looks out over Madison Square Park from the roof of the Manhattan Appellate Courthouse in the form of a shimmering golden goddess. With a somewhat androgynous form, it joins male historical figures carved from stone such as Zoroaster and Confucius.

Each of the statues atop the building represents people known for establishing legal systems around the world. Not only does a stark difference in material draw more attention to this temporary installation, but the hybridity of the figure challenges the patriarchal system all around it. Alongside these rigid, stony characters, “Havah” reflects a queer feminine presence lacking from the current systems of power.

“The image of justice as a woman has been present for centuries, but women only gained juridical voice in the last one,” says Sikander in her artist statement.


Despite the harsh reaction to Sikander’s work from conservative Christians, judicial buildings across the U.S. have another goddess watching over them. Lady Justice, or Justitia in Roman Paganism, has stood as a symbol for law and order since the time of Emperor Augustus 2000 years ago. Sikander even references Lady Justice in her statement about the work.

“In the process, it is the dismissal, too, of the indefatigable spirit of the women, who have been collectively fighting for their right to their own bodies over generations,” Sikander said in an interview with Hyperallergic. “However, the enduring power lies with the people who step into and remain in the fight for equality. That spirit and grit is what I want to capture in both the sculptures.”

In many other depictions, she wears a blindfold over her eyes and often carries a scale along with a sword. Yet, both of the figures in “Havah” have root-like tentacles instead of limbs. Rhea Nayyar of Hyperallergic brings attention to the “intrinsic ties between womanhood and nature” in these botanical motifs.

For thousands of years, various deities have served as lawgivers for humanity. Ancient Egyptian religion has a goddess named Ma’at, who weighs the souls of the dead on a scale against an ostrich feather in the afterlife.

Looking back at the archaeological record of the Indus Valley culture from what is now Pakistan, many of the figures depicted in their artwork have a hybrid appearance like the sculptures in “Havah.” As with many other cultures around the world, they anthropomorphized some of their deities in the form of a horned person. Sikander has a deep understanding of this history throughout her artworks.

With its glistening patina, the bronze figure “NOW” rises from a gigantic lotus flower like the goddess Lakshmi. Widely venerated in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, Lakshmi embodies good fortune and prosperity. Also known as Padma, or Kamala (both from the Sanskrit for “lotus”), she is the consort of Vishnu. In addition to her golden skin and lotus throne, her ultimate form known as Mahasri has four arms. Sikander describes some of her past characters as gopi, a term referring to the divine handmaidens of Vishnu.

“Havah” comes from the Urdu word for “air,” but as a name it also refers to Eve from the Biblical Book of Genesis. Fawzia Afzal-Khan of The Friday Times points out that Eve was “the first law-breaker” in Christianity. “To break the laws of patriarchy, enshrined in a constitution based in white male Christian supremacy in this nation since its founding, is clearly a bitter pill to swallow for too many,” writes Afzal-Khan. “Sikander’s feminism is strongly intersectional and transnational in scope, as the title also invokes solidarity with Iranian women.”

Scales of justice

A fellow writer for The Wild Hunt, Clio Ajana, wrote some of her thoughts on what Lady Justice means to contemporary society in her article, Scales of Justice in Time of Trauma. Published about a year ago on March 4, 2022, Ajana wrote about finding balance in bleak times during the early days of the renewed Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Just three months later, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. As a result, state governments across the country have since passed legislation banning abortion at different stages of pregnancy and restricting the rights of women and others over their own bodies.

Meanwhile, The Satanic Temple opened a health clinic in New Mexico earlier this year to perform their “abortion ritual” for patients named in honor of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s mom.

“Havah” will remain in Manhattan until June 2023. All four parts will then move to the University of Houston in Texas from October until June 2024.

Trevor Leach (they/them) is a writer, artist, and witch rooted in the Appalachian Mountains. Originally from a swamp named Loxahatchee, they have a BA in English Literature from the University of Central Florida and a BFA in Art Practices from the University of Colorado – Denver. In addition to publishing several books and zines, they have also served on the editorial teams of The Sentry newspaper and Paperbark magazine. Follow them through misty mountains, haunted forests, and fairy gardens on their website at www.mallowrosecottage.com or on Instagram @mallowrosepress.

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