“The MOMENT the barriers were removed we started getting images posted to Google again!” sculptor Amanda Matthews declared. She hopes it’s a good sign for the future of The Girl Puzzle.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
“I am hoping there is a sign by now explaining that upgrades are coming,” Matthews continued.
There isn’t, and RIOC hasn’t made clear decisions on moving forward. The trouble started on the day The Girl Puzzle opened with a concrete foundation that was poorly set. No one, so far, has accepted blame for the screw-up.
Of equal importance, efforts so far aimed at fixing the foundation have failed. Now, another solution must be pulled together.
Closing the public art installation by setting up metal barriers and stringing ugly yellow tape around it was intended to prevent further degradation, although RIOC failed to make any announcements. This thoughtful work just sat there like scrap in an open field.
But Things Are Looking Up for The Girl Puzzle
“I am pleased with the renewed communication from RIOC and hopeful that a more permanent fix to the concrete is on the horizon,” Matthews said.
For some months and until the new interim leadership took control of RIOC in January, there were no communications regarding a fix, not an unusual circumstance during the Haynes administration.
Now, Matthews is hopeful.
“I want to make sure we don’t miss the upcoming warm weather opportunity to get started and hope considerations and approvals find their way through RIOC quickly so thousands more can visit and enjoy The Girl Puzzle Monument this year!”
We’ll see if good intentions yield effective actions, always a struggle in bureaucracies.
About Amanda Matthews and The Girl Puzzle.
Amanda Matthews, an American sculptor and designer, is the creative mind behind The Girl Puzzle, a public art installation honoring journalist and activist Nellie Bly. Matthews is also the CEO of Prometheus Art, a design and build firm.
The Girl Puzzle
The Girl Puzzle is situated at Lighthouse Park. It consists of five, seven-foot-tall sculptures depicting the faces of women. These bronze-cast pieces are designed in sections, resembling giant puzzle pieces, symbolizing the idea of being broken but repaired.
The monument’s title is a tribute to Bly’s first published work, The Girl Puzzle, an article which appeared in the Pittsburgh Dispatch in 1885. The monument not only honors Bly but also celebrates the strength and resilience of women in general, especially those who have overcome challenges and contributed to social progress.
The Line That Didn’t Land
I stood in the back of Good Shepherd Chapel on the evening of April 15, 2026, at the Steam Plant Demolition Town Hall, watching people adjust scarves and jackets before the meeting began. Benjamin Jones, President and CEO of RIOC, thanked us for attending and, without a pause, said he was “pleased to host tonight’s town hall on the city’s demolition of its steam plant.” The demolition, in other words, was not up for discussion.
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