By Nick Bond
Copyright news
Well, perhaps “honoured” is a strong word.
The sculpture, the work of Atlanta-based artist Fred Ajanogha, was unveiled at Carver High School, which the star attended back when she was Anna Mae Bullock, on Sunday as part of the annual Tina Turner Heritage Day celebrations.
The statue shows Turner, who died in 2023 aged 83, at the height of her 80s career success: Giant hair and small dress, mid-performance. From far away it’s not … so bad:
But the likeness to Turner – or lack thereof – has earned the artwork some brutal reactions on social media.
ABC News in the US tweeted out a photo of the statue, and got hundreds of comments in response, mostly from horrified fans of the star.
“Love Tina Turner, but this is not her,” wrote one person.
“Let’s normalize refusing ugly statues and hiring someone else to start over,” another suggested.
“Where are those AMAZING legs and calves? She was not only an awesome singer, she was fit! I don’t think this does her justice,” wrote another person.
The same outlet’s Facebook post revealing the statue earned several thousand comments, again overwhelmingly negative.
“Whoever decided on the hair will not see the kingdom of Heaven,” read one top-rated comment.
“Did the people who made the statue know what Tina Turner looked like?” another asked.
“And she’d be ‘rollin’ rollin’ rollin’ in her grave if she could see this statue’s hair,” quipped another.
Turner died in May 2023 at her home in Kusnacht near Zurich, Switzerland, following a long period of illness.
Turner had suffered a number of health issues in recent years, including cancer, a stroke and kidney failure.
