Thomas J. Price's multifaceted artistic practice examines ingrained biases surrounding representation and identity within public monuments. Renowned for his large-scale figurative sculptures, Price employs material, scale, and human emotion to question conventional notions of who merits public commemoration. His anonymous figures, clad in everyday attire, offer a deliberate contrast to traditional monuments depicting military leaders and political figures, evoking a sense of stoicism akin to the universally recognized Statue of Liberty.
Price’s title Within the Folds (Dialogue 1) implies a dual meaning: it situates his figure “within the folds” of art history while simultaneously highlighting the artist's skill in sculpting the fluidity of fabric in a rigid medium. "Dialogue I" may refer to the fifth-century Greek philosopher Plato's Dialogues, where he explored complex ideas in public exchanges to generate common understanding rather than division.
Originally featured in Sculpture Milwaukee's 2020 exhibition, Within the Folds (Dialogue I) was installed at the foot of Wisconsin’s tallest building, the U.S. Bank Center. Today, the sculpture temporarily resides in the newly established Vel R. Phillips Plaza. This public space honors Vel R. Phillips, a pioneering figure as the first Black woman to graduate from the University of Wisconsin Law School, the first woman and Black citizen elected Alderwoman to the Milwaukee Common Council, the first Black woman to serve as a jurist in Wisconsin, and the first Black citizen, and woman, elected as Wisconsin’s Secretary of State.
A memorial sculpture of Vel R. Phillips, the first outdoor sculpture of an African American woman located outside of any U.S. state capitol, was erected at the Wisconsin State Capitol building in Madison in 2024. In 2026, the City of Milwaukee will unveil a newly commissioned sculpture in Vel R. Phillips Plaza by artist Karyn Olivier. This sculpture not only honors Vel R. Phillips’ trailblazing legacy as a civil rights leader and public servant but also stands as a lasting call to action, urging all who encounter it to recognize their own power to advance justice and shape democracy through civic engagement.
Within the Folds (Dialogue I) will be temporarily exhibited at Vel R. Phillips Plaza. It will then travel to other venues before ultimately being installed at America’s Black Holocaust Museum in Milwaukee’s Historic Bronzeville Neighborhood.
This installation is made possible through collaboration between the City of Milwaukee, America’s Black Holocaust Museum, Sculpture Milwaukee, and Milwaukee Downtown Inc./BID #21.
Thomas J. Price's multifaceted artistic practice examines ingrained biases surrounding representation and identity within public monuments. Renowned for his large-scale figurative sculptures, Price employs material, scale, and human emotion to question conventional notions of who merits public commemoration. His anonymous figures, clad in everyday attire, offer a deliberate contrast to traditional monuments depicting military leaders and political figures, evoking a sense of stoicism akin to the universally recognized Statue of Liberty.
Price’s title Within the Folds (Dialogue 1) implies a dual meaning: it situates his figure “within the folds” of art history while simultaneously highlighting the artist's skill in sculpting the fluidity of fabric in a rigid medium. "Dialogue I" may refer to the fifth-century Greek philosopher Plato's Dialogues, where he explored complex ideas in public exchanges to generate common understanding rather than division.
Originally featured in Sculpture Milwaukee's 2020 exhibition, Within the Folds (Dialogue I) was installed at the foot of Wisconsin’s tallest building, the U.S. Bank Center. Today, the sculpture temporarily resides in the newly established Vel R. Phillips Plaza. This public space honors Vel R. Phillips, a pioneering figure as the first Black woman to graduate from the University of Wisconsin Law School, the first woman and Black citizen elected Alderwoman to the Milwaukee Common Council, the first Black woman to serve as a jurist in Wisconsin, and the first Black citizen, and woman, elected as Wisconsin’s Secretary of State.
A memorial sculpture of Vel R. Phillips, the first outdoor sculpture of an African American woman located outside of any U.S. state capitol, was erected at the Wisconsin State Capitol building in Madison in 2024. In 2026, the City of Milwaukee will unveil a newly commissioned sculpture in Vel R. Phillips Plaza by artist Karyn Olivier. This sculpture not only honors Vel R. Phillips’ trailblazing legacy as a civil rights leader and public servant but also stands as a lasting call to action, urging all who encounter it to recognize their own power to advance justice and shape democracy through civic engagement.
Within the Folds (Dialogue I) will be temporarily exhibited at Vel R. Phillips Plaza. It will then travel to other venues before ultimately being installed at America’s Black Holocaust Museum in Milwaukee’s Historic Bronzeville Neighborhood.
This installation is made possible through collaboration between the City of Milwaukee, America’s Black Holocaust Museum, Sculpture Milwaukee, and Milwaukee Downtown Inc./BID #21.
