The “Light of Truth” Ida B. Wells National Monument by Richard Hunt/Photo: Jyoti Srivastava
As written by Yvonne Krumrey of Newcity Art
“After thirteen years of planning, fundraising and crafting, the “Light of Truth” monument to Ida B. Wells-Barnett was unveiled this summer. Wells-Barnett’s great-granddaughter Michelle Duster spearheaded the effort, as part of a family tradition of keeping Ida’s legacy alive. In this role, Duster has also written, edited and contributed to a dozen books on Wells-Barnett.
The “Light of Truth,” constructed by one of Chicago’s most revered sculptors, Richard Hunt, stands thirty-five feet high and weighs 14,000 pounds. An abstract figure of shining, light bronze standing on three columns, the “Light of Truth” is a twisting, open, torch-like configuration over levitating stair steps. Standing under it gives a sense of its stature: the average person comes up to about a third of the height of the base. Installed in the Bronzeville neighborhood, the monument sits where Wells-Barnett made her impact on Chicago in the late 1800s and early twentieth century…”