November 21, 2023, News Release
The “Swords into Plowshares” team is proud to announce that Eze Amos’ photograph of a foundry worker using a plasma torch to cut the head of the bronze statue of Robert E. Lee has been chosen by TIME as one of its TOP 100 PHOTOS of 2023!
Eze Amos was part of the “Swords into Plowshares” team permitted to witness and document the melting of the Robert E. Lee statue that once stood in Charlottesville’s Market Street Park (formerly known as Lee Park). The melting took place on October 21, 2023, at an undisclosed foundry in the South. In this image, Eze captures a foundry worker preparing the bronze head of Lee to go into the furnace.
On Instagram, Amos reflected about being on site for this historic occasion, as well as about covering the Charlottesville Confederate monument story since 2017. Born in Nigeria, Eze Amos immigrated to the United States in 2008. He is currently an artist and photojournalist based in Charlottesville and has contributed work to local and national news outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR, and The Associated Press.
“Swords into Plowshares” is a project of the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center, led by Executive Director, Dr. Andrea Douglas. She remarked, “I have worked with Eze Amos for several years and have come to understand the emotive power of his images. Having witnessed the event depicted in this amazing photograph, I can say it truly captures the gravity of the moment.”
The next phase of the “Swords into Plowshares” project will involve commissioning a nationally recognized artist to create a new work of public art using the bronze ingots made from the melted statue. Community engagement will continue to be an integral part of the process.
