By Nancy Schon

I have spent my life creating public art, My sculpture, Make Way for Ducklings in the Boston Garden has brought joy to countless children, and taught generations about caring, and making way for one another.

I have learned something fundamental about public art. It is powerful. It  is profound. It speaks to adults and children alike, creating emotional connections, making people laugh or cry. Art creates a footprint in history—a marker of who we were and what we valued at a particular moment in time.

Today we face a crisis. One man, driven by ego and indifference to the suffering of others, has reshaped our nation into something unrecognizable—something built on division, cruelty, and contempt rather than the values that have historically defined us as Americans. He has normalized hatred and anger, turning neighbor against neighbor, community against community.

I believe one woman—one voice—can make a difference. And if one voice can make a difference, imagine what millions of voices together can achieve.

My latest sculpture carries a message for this moment: What the world needs now is love—not hate and anger.

Love is active. Love is courageous. Love means standing up for what is right, protecting the vulnerable, and refusing to let cruelty become normal. It means kindness matters more than power.

Public art endures because it speaks truth. It outlasts individual politicians and political movements. It becomes touchstones for future generations.

My message serves as a reminder that another way is possible. We can choose love over hate.  We can reject leaders who traffic in cruelty and brutality. We must demand better for ourselves, our children, and our country.

I  believe  in the power of art to change hearts and minds. At 97, I still believe it. But art alone is not enough. What the world needs now is love. We need each person to carry this message forward—in how we treat one another, in how we raise our children, in how we participate in our democracy.