Trump announces sculpture garden site as he muses on architecture after trip to China
By Alejandra Jaramillo, Sunlen Serfaty, CNN
(CNN) — President Donald Trump announced Friday that his “National Garden of American Heroes” will be built in West Potomac Park, advancing a yearslong push for a sweeping sculpture park honoring hundreds of prominent Americans ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary in 2026.
“I’m proud to announce the site of the NATIONAL GARDEN OF AMERICAN HEROES,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social as he traveled back from a high-stakes visit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing.
“This magnificent exhibition of statues will be located in West Potomac Park, which we are transforming into one of the World’s most beautiful public spaces. Right now, it is a totally BARREN field of Prime Waterfront Real Estate along our Mighty Potomac River,” Trump added.
It was one of multiple social media posts the president sent related to architecture while traveling back from China.
The garden project has been a priority for the president since the final year of his first term in office. But despite renewed momentum during his second term, the ambitious plan faces questions over timing, cost and support.
Sources last month told CNN it was unlikely the sculpture garden would be completed in time for the country’s July 2026 semiquincentennial celebration.
The planned garden would feature 250 life-size statues honoring a wide range of American figures, including Kobe Bryant, Amelia Earhart, Abraham Lincoln, Muhammad Ali, Christopher Columbus and Sally Ride, among others. Trump said the statues would honor “Founding Fathers, Military Warriors, Religious Leaders, Civil Rights Champions, World Class Athletes, Artists, Entertainers, and MORE.”
“The people of America (and the World!) will come here to learn and be inspired by the “Greats”. The National Garden of American Heroes is one more project we are undertaking to honor the 250th Birthday of the Greatest Nation on Earth, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!” Trump wrote on Friday.
A source familiar with the project says it is expected to come before the Commission of Fine Arts, which is filled with Trump allies, in June. It is the first time the project will be presented before one of the two commissions that need to formally approve it.
Trump first presented the idea during a political speech at the base of Mount Rushmore during his first term six years ago. He then issued an executive order officially ordering the project shortly before leaving office.
At the time, Trump described the project as a garden “to reflect the awesome splendor of our country’s timeless exceptionalism.”
In 2021, President Joe Biden revoked Trump’s executive order, only for Trump to reinstate executive orders related to the sculpture garden in January 2025.
The effort to build a new sculpture garden comes as the president has worked to make a lasting impact on the nation’s capital with architectural projects including plans for a White House ballroom and a 250-foot arch near Arlington Cemetery.
On Friday, Trump also used his trip to China to spotlight his long-discussed ballroom project, posting on social media that the United States should have a grand venue comparable to the one he visited in Beijing.
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CNN’s Sunlen Serfaty contributed to this report.
