A Buddha Is Reborn on the High Line

""This sculpture creates a friction with the surroundings here in New York. It's not sleek like everything else you can see here. It offers a hint to the public that temporality is not necessarily a straight line, that things can come back almost like in a wheel.""

"The Bamiyan Buddhas, enormous reliefs that dated back to around the 6th century, were hewn into a sandstone cliffside of the Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan, a region along the Silk Road trade route that became a prominent Buddhist site."

"Of the two figures, the larger Buddha was affectionately referred to as 'Salsal,' which translates to 'the light that shines through the universe,' also the title of Nguyen's work."

"Beloved for their historic significance and symbolism of intercultural exchange in the area, the Bamiyan Buddhas were sadly destroyed in 2001 by the Taliban in an act of iconoclasm."

Tuan Andrew Nguyen's sculpture, "The Light That Shines Through the Universe," stands 27 feet tall on the High Line, symbolizing the destroyed Bamiyan Buddhas. Installed at West 30th Street and 10th Avenue, it invites reflection on cultural heritage and temporality. The sculpture contrasts with its modern surroundings, offering a sense of warmth and history. The Bamiyan Buddhas, significant for their cultural and historical value, were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, representing a loss of intercultural exchange and heritage.

Read at Hyperallergic