Obama Presidential Center
Chicago, IL
Installed: 20 Mar 2026
obama.org

Opens Spring 2026

artist profile


Alison Saar (Grounds | Women’s Garden)
A towering cast bronze figure inspired by the Statue of Liberty, Torch Song embodies the soul of Chicago’s blues heritage. Raising a gilded flame skyward in song, she becomes a beacon of resistance and truth, igniting viewers to challenge the status quo and expose injustices.


SELECTED ARTICLE
Kinsella, Eileen. "Obama Center Commissions Jenny Holzer, Alison Saar, More for Art-Filled Campus." ARTNET, 10 Sep 2025.
news.artnet.com

"The Obama Foundation announced today an additional group of ten celebrated artists whose commissioned work will be featured across the Obama Presidential Center’s expansive campus, the vast majority of which is free and open to the public.

These ten luminary and rising artists — Nick Cave, Nekisha Durrett, Jenny Holzer, Jules Julien, Idris Khan, Aliza Nisenbaum, Jack Pierson, Alison Saar, Kiki Smith, and Marie Watt — represent a diverse and dynamic cross-section of the global contemporary art world and reflect the Center’s commitment to free, accessible public art as a vital force in civic life."