Trump Unveils Latest Plans for Proposed 250-Foot Tall Triumphal Arch
ARTnews reported that the Trump administration has submitted a design to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts for a proposed 250-foot-tall triumphal arch intended to face the Lincoln Memorial and rise at one end of the Arlington Memorial Bridge over the Potomac River. The New York Times first reported the submission, and the commission—whose members were appointed during the Trump administration—is expected to deliberate on the proposal when it meets next week. The project has been promoted as part of celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary, and Donald Trump introduced it last October at a White House dinner for donors connected to another plan: a $400 million, 90,000-square-foot ballroom attached to the White House’s East Wing, for which part of the East Wing was demolished. Models shown to donors reportedly included two eagles and a golden angel with outstretched wings, which Trump said represented Lady Liberty, and the arch is framed as part of a broader “Making Federal Architecture Beautiful Again” initiative favoring classical styles and including plans for a National Garden of Heroes.
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This story was covered in Museum Power Shifts and Art Crime Crackdowns