Anya Gallaccio to Design London’s First HIV/AIDS Memorial

AIDS Memory UKhas announced that British artistAnya Gallacciowill create London’s first permanent public monument commemorating those affected by HIV/AIDS. Gallaccio, who is known for her spare, large-scale installations featuring organic matter, beat out a short list of four other London-based artists, including Ryan Gander, Harold Offeh, Shahpour Pouyan, and Diana Puntar, to secure the commission. Her winning proposal features the cross-section of a tree trunk, with some of its inner rings removed and displayed upright nearby. The remainder of the trunk will form a circular, bench-like structure that the artist hopes will serve as a space for community gathering.

“The tree is a symbol of life,” said Gallaccio in a statement. “The planes that line the street side of the crescent are everywhere in the city, for good reason—they withstand pollution. They are survivors, living despite their environment, a clunky but perhaps fitting metaphor for those living with HIV and AIDS. Hidden in plain sight.”

“Anya’s proposal is a powerful symbol of solidarity and a fitting way to honor those who have lost their lives to the virus,” said London mayor Sadiq Khan in a statement.

Funded in part by Khan, who set aside £130,000 (USD $166,000) from the city’s Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm for the purpose, the installation is meant to raise consciousness around four groups struggling with HIV/AIDS: gay and bisexual men, Black and African communities, people with bleeding disorders, and IV drug users.

Expected to be unveiled in 2027, the monument will be located near Middlesex Hospital, where Princess Diana opened England’s first dedicated AIDS ward in 1987. The princess famously helped to destigmatize the illness, at a time when it was wrongly believed to be spread by touch, by glovelessly shaking hands with a stricken patient there.