Melanie Trump’s statue replaced a wooden figure of the First Lady which was burned down by arsonists last year on 4 July, America’s Independence Day. The Slovenian artist Ales ‘Maxi’ Zupevc designed the original misshapen sculpture to show Ms Trump wearing the iconic blue Ralph Lauren dress she sported at Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration in 2017.
The wooden statue had a round face, with wonky facial features and a very long chin.
After the original sculpture was torched, the US artist Brad Downey was asked to recreate the figure in bronze which was unveiled on Tuesday.
A plaque next to Ms Trump’s statue reads: “Dedicated to the eternal memory of a monument to Melania which stood at this location.”
But the sculpture sent social media users into meltdown as they branded the figure as “disturbing” and “hilarious”.
One user said: “Disturbing and resembles nothing found in nature. Nailed it.”
While another wrote: “Am I the only one that finds this ‘statue’ of Melania Trump absolutely hilarious?”
Some social media users took to Twitter to sarcastically say the sculpture is a perfect match for Ms Trump.
One Twitter user said: “The statue exudes the same warmth.”
Another user reacted: “Really captures the likeness.”
While one user tweeted: “Still has more personality than the real thing.”
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In 2012, a small north-eastern Spanish town, Borja, became famous after a parishioner attempted to restore Elias Garcia Martinez’s “Ecce Homo”.
The work was originally painted in 1930 and portrayed Jesus’ face.
But the parishioner painted the face blurrily as critics branded the revamp as a cross between a potato and a monkey.
Comparing Ms Trump’s figure which the botched Spanish painting, one Twitter user sarcastically posted: “Scarily realistic … they’ve caught her personality and the way the eyes follow you around the room.
“It’s a masterpiece, this is obviously where they got their inspiration.”
Another Twitter user compared the two artworks and said: “This Melania Trump statue reminds me of something…”
But it is not the first time a statue of a high-profile figure has received criticism from fans.
In 2017, fans of Cristiano Ronaldo were left in hysterics after a bust of the footballer was unveiled in Madeira Airport, Portugal.
It was revealed as part of a ceremony to name the airport after him in Mr Ronaldo’s native region.
The statue’s artist Emanuel Santos insisted Ms Ronaldo’s sculpture was “a matter of taste” after fans were left reeling.