Mark Zuckerberg Taps Daniel Arsham for a Sculpture of His Wife

Mark Zuckerberg Commissioned Daniel Arsham to Make a Sculpture of His Wife Priscilla Chan

By Regina Sienra on August 16, 2024

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Una publicación compartida por Mark Zuckerberg (@zuck)

American artist Daniel Arsham recently unveiled his latest project—one that seems to draw from classical sculpture both in its form and its intention. The New York-based creator was commissioned by Mark Zuckerberg, CEO and founder of Meta (the parent company of Facebook), to craft a larger-than-life sculpture of his beloved wife, Priscilla Chan.

The sculpture appears to be 7 feet tall and captures Chan mid-stride. The artist cast her likeness in the green hue of an oxidized copper, finished in a dark teal coating. Chan's expression is tender but determined. A highly reflective silver cloak flows around her, rising well above her body—almost creating the illusion of wings when looked at head-on. The sculpture stands on a base, also of oxidized copper, with wave-like figures that match the movement of the shiny garment.

Zuckerberg posted an image to Instagram of Chan standing next to the sculpture with the caption, “Bringing back the Roman tradition of making sculptures of your wife.” In the image, his wife stands nonchalantly, wearing a bathrobe and sipping from a mug. Chan replied in the comments, “The more of me the better?”

Journalist Gayle King asked Zuckerberg about the backstory of the piece in a comment. Zuckerberg responded, “I just try to keep a steady stream of creative projects going. I’ve joked about making a sculpture of her for years and when the opportunity to work with Arsham came up I finally did it!”

Since unveiling the piece on Instagram, it has been met with much criticism, praise, and humor. One commenter wrote, “This is the most billionaire thing to do ever.” Some found the sculpture to be a grotesque representation of Chan while others applauded the sculptor’s fine work.

Arsham, who has worked with Tiffany and Dior, is known for his inclination towards antiquity. He has integrated elements of traditional art and architecture into his sculptures, and has created fossilized relics of contemporary objects as an exploration of the timelessness of art. “Most of the projects I work on are an invitation to reimagine your position within time,” he told Ignant.

Chan and Zuckerberg met while in college studying at Harvard in 2003 and married in 2012. She is a philanthropist, pediatrician, and former teacher, as well as a self-described “science nerd.” Together, Zuckerberg and Chan have three daughters named Maxima, August, and Aurelia.