Tschabalala Self will bring a contemporary ‘everywoman’ to Trafalgar Square this September, with her new sculpture Lady in Blue becoming the 16th commission for London’s Fourth Plinth.
Unveiled on 10th September 2026, the monumental bronze sculpture will replace Teresa Margolles’ Mil Veces un Instante (A Thousand Times in an Instant), currently installed on the Fourth Plinth.
Lady in Blue pays homage to a young metropolitan woman: not a historical figure, hero or idol, but an everyday presence reflecting the lives of many contemporary Londoners. Walking forward with purpose, the figure was conceived by Self as a modern ‘everywoman’ for one of the capital’s most prominent public spaces.
Cast in bronze, the sculpture will be patinated in Lapis Lazuli blue, drawing on a rare pigment prized since antiquity. The intense blue surface will give Self’s figure a striking presence against the stone architecture of Trafalgar Square.
“My work Lady in Blue will bring to Trafalgar Square a woman that many can relate to,”
said Self.
“She is not an idol to venerate or a historic figurehead to commemorate. She is a woman walking forward into our collective future with ambition and purpose.”
“She is a Londoner who represents the city’s spirit. I have London to thank for so many milestones in my practice. I had my first institutional show here, and later the first presentation of my first major painting series. The city has truly supported my artistic development and is the best possible home for this powerful figure.”
Born in New York in 1990, Self works across painting, printmaking and sculpture, exploring representations of the human figure with a particular focus on women. Her distinctive practice brings together sewn, printed and painted materials, developing a visual language that has increasingly expanded into three dimensions.
Self was announced as the winner of the Fourth Plinth commission in March 2024 alongside Andra Ursu?a, whose work will follow in 2028. The artists were selected by the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group, chaired by Ekow Eshun OBE, following a public consultation that attracted more than 10,000 comments.
Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, described Lady in Blue as “a bold contemporary sculpture of a confident young woman” that will bring a striking new presence to the historic square.
The Fourth Plinth has become one of the world’s most prominent public art commissions since Mark Wallinger’s Ecce Homo was unveiled in 1999. Fifteen works have since occupied the once-empty plinth, with Self’s sculpture becoming the 16th commission since the programme began in 1998.
The unveiling will also precede London Sculpture Week, running from 19th–27th September 2026. Now in its fifth edition, the city-wide celebration brings together Frieze Sculpture, the Fourth Plinth, East Bank, Sculpture in the City and The Line.
Tschabalala Self: Lady in Blue will be unveiled on the Fourth Plinth, Trafalgar Square, on 10th September 2026.
