A 55-foot tall statue of a nude woman will soon be towering over a BART station in San Leandro, and several riders aren’t happy about it. Rick Boone reports.
A 55-foot tall statue of a nude woman will soon be towering over a BART station in San Leandro, and several riders aren't happy about it.
The steel statue, part of an art attraction on a tech campus next door to the train, is only a pair of legs right now, but some riders want the woman gone before her official debut.
Some are willing to fight it to stop it.
"That represents really bad stuff," said Karen Henderson, a grandmother of six who believes in old-fashion values. "Not to be here and let kids be here; that's not good, that's all pure naked."
The statue, called "Truth is Beauty," will soon be an illuminated nude statue as part of an art exhibit on the San Leandro Tech Campus, all to attract more people, including tech companies, to the area.
"This is the sculpture for bliss - bronze," said artist Marco Cochrane, who has crafted several similar statues.
Not everyone has a problem with the statue. Some appreciate it as art.
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"That's like monumental almost," said an unnamed BART rider. "New York has the Statue of Liberty. We have the Lady of Bliss."
Still, for some who use this BART station often, they say they'll just walk on another street to get to the train.