Millions of people visit the Charging Bull in New York every year. But neither the city nor a British billionaire want to be responsible for the famous sculpture. The trail leads back to a cloak-and-dagger operation almost 40 years ago.
There are thousands who will once again be lining up behind one of the most famous bronze statues in the world on this summer day. Weighing more than three tons, over three meters high and five meters long, the Charging Bull seems to storm off from the cobblestone traffic island in New York's financial district.
Holger and Jasmin from the Bonn area are currently taking a photo for their employer. “We work in the financial industry ourselves,” says Holger, “and the bull is the stock market symbol.” “But we just got together, that’s supposed to bring luck,” says Jasmin.
Anja Mühlbauer from Radevormwald visits the sculpture with a group of tourists. "I'm not superstitious," she says. "The photo is just a special memory for me."
After all, the bull is one of the most famous tourist attractions in the US metropolis. Millions of visitors from all over the world make a pilgrimage to him every year in the hope of luck, money, success and, of course, rising stock prices. But while the Charging Bull has long since become an icon, a very banal question is currently difficult for New Yorkers to answer: Who actually owns it and who takes care of it?
The search for answers leads to a committed artist, to British billionaire Joe Lewis and through decades of eventful history.
Unwelcome Christmas present
The Charging Bull appeared in front of the New York Stock Exchange shortly before Christmas 1989. Its creator, the Italian artist Arturo Di Modica, had watched security personnel for weeks and finally dumped his sculpture overnight in front of the imposing building on Wall Street. But contrary to what many people think today, the bull should not symbolize Wall Street, but rather the can-do mentality of Americans. Di Modica wanted to give the population hope after the stock market collapsed by more than 20 percent in one day on "Black Monday" in 1987 - one of the largest daily percentage losses to date.
"No matter how low you are, you can get back up and keep going. That was Arturo's message," says Fernando Luis Alvarez, a close friend of Di Modica and owner of the Alvarez Gallery, which represented the artist in North America until his death. The fact that setting up the sculpture was illegal is part of the art, says Alvarez.
However, the police and the New York Stock Exchange didn't like it. Although onlookers and journalists immediately gathered around the sculpture, the stock exchange had it removed that same day, sparking an outcry. A local initiative and the head of the New York Parks Department then ensured that the artist was allowed to re-erect the bull not far from Wall Street in Bowling Green Park - actually only temporarily. But despite much discussion about a new location, people have been flocking to the south end of Broadway for almost 40 years.
What role does Joe Lewis play?
Di Modica, who died in 2021 at the age of 80, wanted the bull to stay there. He financed the sculpture with more than $300,000 out of his own pocket and worked on it for two years. As the New York Times reported, he first put it up for sale in the 1990s, but declined an offer because the buyer wanted to take the sculpture to a casino in Las Vegas.
In 2004 the bull was for sale again. British billionaire and investor Joe Lewis struck. The 88-year-old, who pleaded guilty to insider trading in 2024, is said to have made Di Modica promise at the time that he would always keep the statue at her home in Bowling Green. The purchase price is not publicly known, but Di Modica wanted at least five million US dollars for his work at the time.
And yet Lewis is apparently not the owner of the statue. In response to a query from the New York local media "The City Reporter", Lewis' investment company Tavistock Group stated that the Lewis family owned the rights to reproduce the bull. However, the physical statue in Bowling Green does not belong to her or be managed by her. “The family does not own the bull,” said a spokesman. The Tavistock Group did not respond to a request from ntv.de.
However, gallery owner Alvarez confirms to ntv.de that the Lewis family owns the reproduction rights to the sculpture. Di Modica paid maintenance costs himself during his lifetime, for example for a repair in 2019. At that time, a man hit the sculpture with a metal rod in protest against US President Donald Trump, leaving a ten centimeter long notch. He doesn't know who is responsible for caring for the sculpture. "But the quality and thickness of the bronze is so good that it doesn't need much maintenance," says Alvarez.
"It's mysterious"
Julio Saavedra has been selling small figures of the attraction to tourists from his folding table opposite the bull for ten years. Price: $5 and up. He and the other street vendors make a living from the Charging Bull and the stories people tell each other. "They want the characters because they bring happiness. The more people come, the bigger the story becomes," says Saavedra. He noticed that no one felt responsible for the sculpture and didn't know the answer to it himself. "I've heard that it's supposed to be cleaned sometimes. But I've never seen anyone. It's mysterious."
The Smithsonian database, which documents public art, lists the New York City Parks Department as responsible for the bull's management. However, in response to an inquiry from "The City Reporter", it is said that the city neither owns the statue nor is responsible for its maintenance.
Because the bull is still officially considered a temporary installation, some dismiss its significance as "garden art," which outrages gallerist Alvarez. He sees it as a piece of art history. "The sculpture is not financed by Wall Street, a museum or the city, but by the artist himself with his money and effort. This determination and history are part of the work of art."
In 2017, the city placed the “Fearless Girl” statue opposite the bull. A little girl, hands on hips, chin up - financed by fund operator State Street as part of an advertising campaign for International Women's Day. Di Modica saw his work insulted at the time and arranged for the girl's statue to be moved to a new location opposite the stock exchange. "Arturo was very upset because the bull has nothing to do with gender roles. It's about perseverance and carrying on in difficult times, which is still an important message today," says Alvarez.
He believes that no government or individual should be allowed to remove the bull from its current location. "The bull will not disappear. That would be a huge outcry, a political event."
