Tschabalala Self’s Lady in Blue has been unveiled on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, bringing a monumental vision of a contemporary London ‘everywoman’ to the heart of the capital.
Unveiled today, 10th September 2026, the bronze sculpture is the 16th Fourth Plinth commission and succeeds Teresa Margolles’ Mil Veces un Instante (A Thousand Times in an Instant).
Rather than commemorating a monarch, military leader or other historic figure of the kind traditionally found on public monuments, Self’s sculpture celebrates someone deliberately ordinary: a young metropolitan woman striding confidently through the city.
Made in bronze, the figure wears a vibrant blue painted dress and jewellery coloured to resemble lapis lazuli, the rare blue stone used as a pigment since antiquity.
Self describes the figure as an everyday woman rather than someone intended to be placed on a pedestal metaphorically — despite quite literally placing her on one.
“My work Lady in Blue will bring to Trafalgar Square a woman that many can relate to. She is not an idol to venerate or a historic figure to commemorate. She is an everyday person much like the many who occupy the square daily,”
Self said.
“She is striding forward into our collective future with ambition, purpose and optimism. I have always found London to be an inspiring city, London is to thank for many milestones in my life. My first institutional show was held here in London, along with my first major gallery exhibition. I have come to know London as a truly global metropolis, and Lady in Blue reflects the sophistication of this city.”
Born in New York in 1990, Self works across painting, printmaking and sculpture, with representations of the human figure — and particularly women — at the centre of her practice. Her work frequently combines sewn, printed and painted materials to construct figures that challenge conventional representations of bodies, identity and gender.
Self was selected for the Fourth Plinth in March 2024 alongside Andra Ursu?a, whose commission will follow in 2028. The artists were chosen by the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group, chaired by Ekow Eshun, following a public exhibition of the shortlisted proposals and consultation with Londoners.
“Lady in Blue transforms the everyday into the monumental,” said Eshun. “Tschabalala Self takes the familiar figure of a woman moving through the city and gives her an extraordinary presence at the heart of London.”
Justine Simons, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, described the work as “monumental in scale – but at the same time relatable,” adding that Lady in Blue “strides confidently through the city with dignity and purpose.”
The unveiling also arrives just over a week before London Sculpture Week, running from 19th–27th September. Now in its fifth edition, the city-wide programme connects the Fourth Plinth with Frieze Sculpture, East Bank, Sculpture in the City and The Line, creating a trail of public sculpture across London.
For Self, however, the significance of Lady in Blue lies partly in who has been given such a commanding position in one of London’s most historically loaded public spaces.
She isn’t a ruler, a general or a figure from history. She’s simply someone walking through the city — except now she’s doing it from the Fourth Plinth.
The Fourth Plinth is funded by the Mayor of London with support from Arts Council England and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
The production of Lady in Blue was supported by Pilar Corrias. The sculpture will move permanently to Fornebu, Norway, after its fixture in Trafalgar Square.
About
The Fourth Plinth was initiated by the RSA in 1998 and is now one of the most important art commissions in the world. The programme invites world-class artists to make new work for Trafalgar Square, with a new sculpture installed on the Fourth Plinth every two years. The independent Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group makes the final decision on the shortlist and the winning works that are displayed.
It is funded by the Mayor of London with support from Arts Council England and Bloomberg Philanthropies; however, the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group is completely independent. An established part of London’s public landscape, it brings out the art critic in everyone.
