Michael H. Wall

Does owning a piece of property give you the absolute right to alter or remove any art that’s on it? That question was asked in the recent, high-profile dispute in Manhattan over the Elizabeth Street Garden, a public space beloved by residents that was transformed from a once-abandoned city lot into a sculpture-filled garden three decades ago. The city planned to demolish the garden to build affordable housing for seniors. In response, the garden’s advocates filed a federal lawsuit in February 2025, arguing the entire garden was a “physical and social sculpture” protected from destruction by the Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA).