Wall Street

'Fearless Girl' on the move, but leaves footprints for visitors to stand in her place

Key Points
  • The statue's original location in front of the "Charging Bull" statue now bears only a round marker and the outline of footprints of where the statue once stood.
  • State Street Global Advisors, which sponsored "Fearless Girl," has left the marker so visitors can stand in her place, encouraging people to do so.

Tourists and other visitors to Lower Manhattan can take their own stand on the ground formerly occupied by the statue of the "Fearless Girl," which is being moved to a new spot in front of the New York Stock Exchange.

The sculpture's original location in front of the "Charging Bull" statue now bears only a round marker and the outline of footprints where the statue once stood. State Street Global Advisors, which sponsored "Fearless Girl," has left the marker so visitors can stand in her place, encouraging people to do so.

Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

Overnight into Wednesday, workers removed the 50-inch tall bronze statue of a girl with her hands on her hips. It will be installed near the NYSE by the end of the year. The piece was created by Kristen Visbal and installed in March 2017 on the same plaza as Arturo Di Modica's "Charging Bull" bronze sculpture to celebrate "International Women's Day." It was controversial from the start.

State Street commissioned the statue to call attention to the role of women in corporate America and its "gender diversity index" fund. But the artist who created the bull fought to have the girl statue removed, complaining that it was an advertising gimmick that gave his creation a negative connotation.

State Street said it wants people to "stand for her" at the original spot to continue the mission of inspiring gender diversity.