NYC Is Building A Monument Dedicated To LGBTQ People

On Sunday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that an artist has been selected to design the first official monument to LGBTQ people, the New York Times reports.

Artist Anthony Goicolea has been tasked with designing the high-profile monument, and his conceptual design features nine boulders, with some of the boulders bisected with glass strips that refract light to reflect rainbows onto the lawn surrounding it.

According to the New York Times, the monument will be placed in Hudson River Park along the western edge of the West Village of Manhattan, though Gov. Cuomo's office has yet to announce when the monument will go up.

"This stunning design complements the landscape and communicates a timeless message of inclusion, and this monument will serve as an enduring symbol of the role New Yorkers play in building a fairer, more just world," Governor Cuomo said in a statement to Time Out New York. "From Stonewall to marriage equality, New York has always been a beacon for justice and we will never waiver in our commitment to the LGBT community and to creating a more just and inclusive society. This new monument will stand up for those values for generations to come."

Goicolea, a mixed-media artist, told the New York Times that growing up in Georgia, he had "never seen my community reflected back at me."

"I had never seen people — gay people — engaging in this way," he told NYT about his first visit to the West Village, home to Stonewall Inn and the LGBT Center. "There was no apology for it."

Though Stonewall Inn was named as an official national LGBTQ monument last year by then-President Barack Obama, Goicolea's monument is the first to be officially commissioned by the State of New York.