New ‘dictator approved’ sculpture of smashed Statue of Liberty arrives in DC - but nobody knows who is behind it

The sculpture boasts quotes from other dictators praising Trump

A new “dictator approved” sculpture cropped up on the National Mall in front of the Capitol building days after President Donald Trump’s military parade — but the creator remains a mystery.

The eight-foot-tall sculpture, titled “Dictator Approved,” depicts a golden hand — giving a thumbs up — crushing the top of the Statute of Liberty. Her crown is cracked, and one of the seven spikes has fallen off, lying atop the pedestal. It appeared on the National Mall in Washington, DC on Monday.

Trump, who first announced his presidential run in 2015 by descending a golden escalator, has transformed the Oval Office, covering much of it in gold.

A pedestal is also adorned with gold plaques featuring quotes from several world leaders, often characterized as dictators, praising Trump. “President Trump ‘is a very bright and talented man,’” a quote attributed to Russian President Vladimir Putin reads.

A work of political art titled 'Dictator Approved' on the National Mall in Washington, DC, USA, 18 June 2025. The statue of an unknown artist depicts a golden fist smashing the head of the Statue of Liberty, and includes plaques with quotes from Russian President Vladimir Putin, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un. EPA/JIM LO SCALZO (EPA)

On another side bears a quote from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán: "The most respected, the most feared person is Donald Trump."

The artwork appeared days after the president’s military parade in the nation’s capital, which coincided with this birthday celebration — and nationwide “No Kings” protests.

The artwork has a permit to be on the National Mall though June 22, according to a permit seen by The Independent.

The permit states: “Military parade on 6/14 will feature imagery similar of autocratic, oppressive regimes, i.e. N. Korea, Russia, and China, marching through DC. This statue will call attention of that imagery by linking our American traditions of freedom of the actually praising these types of oppressive leaders have given Donald Trump.”

A quote from Vladimir Putin praising Trump is seen on one side of the pedestal of the sculpture. (Getty Images)

“It’s just a sign of today’s political climate,” Diane, a woman walking in the National Mall, told WTOP. “It’s crushing liberty, that’s what it says to me.”

The permit says a security guard is required to guard the statue 24/7. The security guard told the Washingtonian that reactions to the artwork have been “pretty mixed.”

The latest anti-Trump sculpture comes eight months after other political art pieces appeared on the National Mall. In October, a bronze sculpture resembling former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s desk, complete with an emoji-shaped poop, cropped up near the Capitol building.

“This memorial honors the brave men and women who broke into the United States Capitol on January 6th, 2021 to loot, urinate and defecate throughout those hallowed halls in order to overturn an election,” the plaque beneath the artwork read. “President Trump celebrates these heroes of January 6th as ‘unbelievable patriots’ and ‘warriors.’ This monument stands as a testament to their daring sacrifice and lasting legacy.”