An Italian-American artist who spent $100,000 of his own money building a life-size bronze statue of the late Charlie Kirk is struggling to find anyone willing to pay for it.

Sergio Furnari, a New York-based sculptor known for large-scale public works including a 12-foot Cristiano Ronaldo monument unveiled in Times Square, began building the Kirk statue after the conservative activist was shot and killed at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025.

Furnari said he built it for the same reason Michelangelo sculpted the David, to commemorate a person and a moment.

The plan was to find wealthy conservative donors who would help finance the project and eventually turn it into a traveling monument. That hasn’t happened. The statue is currently sitting in his studio, where Furnari is also recovering from a broken foot.

Furnari wants the statue at Times Square
Undeterred, Furnari has announced plans to install the statue in Times Square on September 10 – the one-year anniversary of Kirk’s assassination – hoping that public attention will do what private donors haven’t.

“It’s going to be in the middle of Times Square, the center of the universe,” he said.

“You can bring over whoever you want, family or friends. If you were a big fan of Charlie, this will be your opportunity to maybe find a little bit of peace or harmony.”

He has also addressed critics directly in several videos.

“To all the haters – how many times do you want to kill Charlie? Wasn’t one time enough?” he said, warning people not to come with spray paint or damage the statue.

The internet is not convinced the statue will survive
Online reaction has been swift and largely skeptical. Given New York City’s political leanings and Kirk’s history of inflammatory public statements, many commenters have predicted the statue will be vandalized within days of being unveiled if it makes it to Times Square at all.

Plans to rename a Phoenix freeway after Kirk were already rejected by Arizona’s Democratic governor Katie Hobbs earlier this year.