When the towering statue of Robert E. Lee on horseback was removed from a park in Charlottesville, Virginia, and melted down, it opened up an opportunity for a new monument in that space made with the melted bronze.

The Charlottesville organization Swords into Plowshares selected a proposal by artist Dana King in collaboration with the firm Model of Architecture Serving Society, or MASS, to create “Rooted,” a towering bronze baobab tree.

Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with King and Jha D. Amazi of MASS about the project and about reimagining how monuments and memorials are built.

This segment aired on September 24, 2026.