On Juneteenth 2026, a Mayor’s Office video and a city Juneteenth reception highlighted Lorenzo Pace’s Triumph of the Human Spirit sculpture in Foley Square and its ties to the nearby African Burial Ground memorialization, tracing the monument’s design, selection through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Percent for the Arts program, and its continued role as a public rallying point. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1; Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
# What’s happening
– A Juneteenth video profiles Lorenzo Pace’s Triumph of the Human Spirit monument in Foley Square. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
– Mayor Zohran Mamdani publicly praised the sculpture at a Juneteenth reception on June 16, 2026. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
– Pace was chosen from more than 400 applicants through NYC Department of Cultural Affairs Percent for the Arts. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
# Why it matters
– Foley Square residents, activists, and visitors use the sculpture as a public memorial and gathering site. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
– The monument connects public space to the African Burial Ground and local discussions about memorialization and history. Source (external): https://youtu.be/-iGfAXIlkOU&t=1280
# Key details
– Location: Triumph of the Human Spirit monument, Foley Square, Manhattan. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
– Artist: Lorenzo Pace (chosen from over 400 applicants). Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
– Program: New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Percent for the Arts call selected the monument. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
– Dates: Juneteenth video release June 19, 2026; Mayor’s Juneteenth reception June 16, 2026. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1; Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
– Design elements: sculpture incorporates a Chiwara-inspired form, a boat, and a pool of water as symbolic elements. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=174
– Personal artifact: Pace displays a lock tied to his great-grandfather’s enslavement in Alabama. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
Lorenzo Pace
– Role or jurisdiction: Artist and sculptor who created Triumph of the Human Spirit. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
– Action taken or responsibility: Entered and won a Percent for the Arts selection to design the Foley Square monument. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
– Relevant numbers or dates: Selected from more than 400 applicants; discussed in a Juneteenth video. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
Triumph of the Human Spirit
– Role or jurisdiction: Public sculpture installed in Foley Square, Manhattan. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
– Action taken or responsibility: Serves as a memorial and public gathering site tied to the African Burial Ground. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
– Relevant numbers or dates: Documented in a Juneteenth video published June 19, 2026. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
New York City Department of Cultural Affairs — Percent for the Arts
– Role or jurisdiction: City program that issued a call for artists for memorial work. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
– Action taken or responsibility: Ran the competition that narrowed candidates to five and selected Pace. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
– Relevant numbers or dates: Over 400 artists applied during the selection process. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
Mayor Zohran Mamdani
– Role or jurisdiction: Mayor of New York City. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
– Action taken or responsibility: Acknowledged Triumph of the Human Spirit at a Juneteenth reception. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
– Relevant numbers or dates: Spoke about the sculpture at a Juneteenth event on June 16, 2026. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
A Juneteenth documentary released by the Mayor’s Office profiles Lorenzo Pace and his work on Triumph of the Human Spirit, tracing the sculpture’s inspiration and the artist’s personal connection to the history it commemorates. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
Pace described researching African visual forms such as the Chiwara at the American Museum of Natural History and adapting those influences into an abstract monument that includes a Chiwara-like form atop a boat in a pool of water. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=174
Pace said the boat symbolizes the first Native Americans, immigrants, and his family’s passage to New York, and that New York City was once the second-largest slave port in the country, a point he raised in the video. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=174
Pace recounted receiving a lock from his uncle that had restrained his great-grandfather in Alabama and displayed it as part of his personal history connected to the monument. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1
The selection process for the Foley Square monument was run by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs through its Percent for the Arts program; Pace said more than 400 artists applied and the field was narrowed to five before his model was chosen. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=82
Mayor Zohran Mamdani praised Pace and the sculpture at a Juneteenth reception at Gracie Mansion, saying the monument has become a rallying point and a powerful tribute to those buried nearby. Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
External context from a May 13, 2026 City Council hearing (earlier coverage) included testimony stressing the importance of preserving African burial grounds and creating memorial spaces, connecting local projects and library renovations to broader burial-ground memorialization efforts. Source (external): https://youtu.be/-iGfAXIlkOU&t=1280
Documentation and public remarks in the Mayor’s Office video and at the Juneteenth reception show the monument’s continued public role in ceremonies, education, and remembrance in Foley Square. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1; Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
For additional primary material, view the Mayor’s Office Juneteenth video and the Mayor’s Juneteenth reception. Source: https://youtu.be/IoUBK1tIJIM&t=1; Source: https://youtu.be/i9P0rkvAoJY&t=1406
(External meeting cited above is from an earlier City Council hearing on May 13, 2026; that content is noted here as external to the Mayor’s Office Juneteenth materials.) Source (external): https://youtu.be/-iGfAXIlkOU&t=1280
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