Background press

2021
San Francisco Chronicle - “Lava Thomas speaks out: A candid interview with the artist on saga of S.F.’s Maya Angelou monument” by George McCalman, February 7, 2021.
ABC7 News San Francisco - “Celebrating Black voice: Here’s a look at Dr. Maya Angelou’s Bay Area connection, legacy” by Jobina Fortson, February 2, 2021.

2020
KQED - “SFAC Awards the Maya Angelou Monument to Lava Thomas, Finally” by Sarah Hotchkiss, November 16, 2020.
San Francisco Chronicle - “S.F. City Hall wrong made right: Eye-catching Maya Angelou Monument to be installed after all” by Heather Knight, November 6, 2020.
New York Times - “San Francisco Reinstates Winning Design for Maya Angelou” by Zachary Small, November 5, 2020.
SFIST - “Previously Selected Maya Angelou Monument Reinstated, Planned For Civic Center Installation” by Jay Barmann, November 3, 2020.
New York Times - “San Francisco Apologizes to Artist Over Maya Angelou Monument,” by Zachary Small, August 5, 2020.
SFAC - “SFAC Announcement of Maya Angelou Monument” by Denise Bradley-Tyson, August 3, 2020.
KQED - “SFAC Apologizes to Lava Thomas for Mishandling Maya Angelou Monument,” by Chloe Veltman, August 3, 2020.
ArtNews - “When public art becomes a political risk, heads roll,” by Zachary Small (Summer 2020).
KQED - “SF to evaluate public monuments, but community questions its track record,” by Chloe Veltman, July 16, 2020.
San Francisco Chronicle -“Toppling of SF statues springs from city’s long history of inaction: ‘It fell on deaf ears,” by Heather Knight, June 26, 2020.
San Francisco Chronicle - “Maya Angelou wouldn’t approve of this statue fiasco,” By Caille Millner, January 10, 2020.

2019
Hyperallergic - “In San Francisco, a Design for Maya Angelou Monument Is Approved, Then Suddenly Scraped,” by Emily Wilson, October 23, 2019.
San Francisco Chronicle - “Artist’s vision for Maya Angelou statue crushed by City Hall’s dysfunction,” by Heather Knight, October 19, 2019.
KQED - “Plans for Maya Angelou Monument in San Francisco Face Long Delay,” by Chloe Veltman, October 17, 2019.
The Art Newspaper - “San Francisco Selected an artist to create a monument to Maya Angelou—then rejected her,” by Zachary Small, October 17, 2019.
San Francisco Examiner - “Proposals for sculpture to honor Maya Angelou meet with rejection,” by Joshua Sabatini, October 16, 2019.
Hyperallergic - “San Francisco Will Raise Maya Angelou Sculpture,” by Zachary Small, August 5, 2019.
San Francisco Chronicle - “Statue of Maya Angelou comes into sharp relief as SF diversifies public art,” by Heather Knight, July 21, 2019.