Free Nelson Mandela (sculpture)

Free Nelson Mandela is a sculpture in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, created by David Hammons in 1987. Alternatively referred to as a monument, the piece was originally created as a statement demanding the liberation of the imprisoned South African activist, Nelson Mandela. The official title is Nelson Mandela Must Be Free to Lead His People and South Africa to Peace and Prosperity.^[1] However, it is most frequently called just Free Nelson Mandela, because those words are carved in the face of the granite rock that is the bottom portion of the sculpture.

The top portion is a 12 feet high fence of iron bars radiating from the rock and topped with barbed wire. In the fence is a working gate, which was padlocked shut while Mandela was imprisoned. After Mandela's release in 1990, the padlock was unlocked with the key which had been left with Atlanta city officials by the artist. The gate has remained in an open position ever since, and the rock proclaims that there is now a "Free Nelson Mandela". There are also small segments of chain attached to the bottom corners of the rock, adjacent to the base. At some point after the gate was opened, three bars to the right of the gate were painted, respectively, green, black, and yellow, the colors of the South African flag. The entire sculpture weighs 7 tons.^[2]