In the daytime, the sculpture will sparkle with natural sunlight, and at night, the gold interior cylinder is illuminated by LED lights. The artist intended the sculpture to be viewed by speeding traffic, to give an illusion of movement from all angles – completely unbounded and kinetic in nature – a contemporary metaphor of the universal message of the Cyrus Cylinder traveling through time and space. The ring shapes are not solid, but appear to be moving lines of a script. The two rings are linked internally to form a strong and robust structure. The interior cylinder is gold, and the outer element is silver - both interacting with each other in an exchange of strength and vulnerability. The large-scale, modern-day sculptural interpretation of the Cyrus Cylinder is made of two finely crafted 100% stainless steel cylinders, one within the other. It is themed on the Cyrus Cylinder from 2,500 years ago, widely considered the first declaration of human rights, whereby Cyrus the Great Persian King originally granted individual and religious freedoms to all within his vast and culturally diverse empire. The winning design of the Freedom Sculpture was created by renowned artist and architect Cecil Balmond. It now stands like a “Statue of Liberty for the West Coast”, in the heart of Los Angeles, one of the world’s most culturally diverse cities, as a permanent symbolic reminder that freedom, inclusiveness and respect for diversity are the foundational values that truly make America great.ĭonors who supported the Freedom Sculpture up to November 1, 2017, no matter to what dollar amount, had their name added to the online supporters wall, and will be forever listed as part of the permanent legacy of this soon-to-be national landmark. With over a million supporters, from all across America and over 50 countries around the world, the Freedom Sculpture has become the most widely crowd-supported monumental gift in U.S. It took 4 years for the Farhang Foundation, a non-political, non-religious, non-profit Iranian-American cultural organization, to commission, secure city authorization and raise enough money build and install the Freedom Sculpture, a permanent iconic monument celebrating religious freedom, cultural diversity and inclusiveness - the humanitarian ideals or Cyrus the Great that have been enshrined by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution of the United States. "I wanted to participate in saying thank you to America through the gift of the Freedom Sculpture since it evokes the ancient cylinder of Cyrus the Great which celebrates freedom of choice and inclusiveness." "It is a noble cause and one that is so important to bringing people of all faiths together under the umbrella of freedom." "I'm excited to support the Freedom Sculpture because it reminds us that progress in areas like human rights builds on innovation from cultures before us." "I'm proud to have the Freedom Sculpture placed here in Los Angeles, and I sincerely thank the Iranian-American community for leading the diverse group of supporters who have come together to make this monument a reality." Read Full Letter "The Freedom Sculpture is a testament to the values we hold dear, and we are honored to receive it." "The Freedom Sculpture is the ideal monument to represent what California embodies, a state which actively embraces and values diversity." Read Proclamation
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