After facing a social media firestorm over his Dwyane Wade statue, sculptor Omri Amrany spoke out about the criticism. Unveiled Sunday outside Kaseya Center, the eight-foot bust of the Miami Heat legend drew sharp critiques for its lack of resemblance to the three-time champion.
On Monday, Amrany told Front Office Sports about his reaction to the backlash and revealed Wade’s detailed involvement in the statue’s design.
“I want to be an artist that creates an in-your-face response and you cannot expect all of human society will have a positive reaction,” Amrany told the outlet.
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“Some people will come with a goofy response or angry response. That’s not because of what the art is itself, but rather how it makes them feel. So, if this is my part of being a psychologist, fine.”
Much of the criticism focused on the statue’s depiction of Wade’s face, drawing comparisons to the infamous botched Cristiano Ronaldo statue from 2017.
Amrany collaborated with artist Oscar Leon to create the Wade statue. His firm, Studio Rotblatt Amrany, was not involved in the Ronaldo statue.
Amrany revealed that Wade, a Hall of Famer, visited their Chicago studio multiple times during the creation process and that many twisted Wade’s remarks during the unveiling ceremony.
“He knew exactly what he wanted,” Amrany said. “He was very happy with the piece. He was joking when he turned around and said, ‘Who is this guy?’ It was like, ‘How did I get here where somebody made a sculpture for me?’
“Some people took it like he didn’t recognize his own sculpture, which is completely the opposite. It was just an expression. Sometimes people take the expression literally instead of trying to understand the depth of it.”
Despite fans misinterpreting his initial comments, Wade called the statue “beautiful” during Sunday’s ceremony.
“Personally, I’m biased, I think it’s one of the best statues that’s been created because of what it represents for us and for me,” Wade told the Miami Herald.
Wade’s sculpture is the first to be erected outside Kaseya Center, home of the Miami Heat. Amrany also highlighted the connection between this sculpture and his renowned Michael Jordan statue, “The Spirit”, outside Chicago’s United Center.
“I was looking at this one as continuing a tradition,” Amrany said. “Dwyane was about 11 years old when his father took him to see the sculpture of Michael Jordan in Chicago after we unveiled it.
“Now, Dwyane is part of the next generation who is getting the tribute,” he added. “I would like to see another 11-year-old kid with his father inspired by this statue and, 20 or 30 years from now, will have his own statue unveiled.”
The Wade statue captures his iconic “this is my house” gesture from a double-overtime victory over the Bulls in the 2008-2009 season. The sculptor discussed the unique challenges of depicting this celebration, compared to action shots in his other works.
“That’s what makes things a little bit harder because, at the end of the day, you’re still looking at hundreds of hundreds of pounds of bronze that has to be standing safely for many years to come,” Amrany said.
Beyond his Wade and Jordan statues, Amrany crafted sculptures outside Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, including Shaquille O’Neal, Magic Johnson, and the Kings’ 50th Anniversary statues.
In August, he unveiled a second Kobe Bryant statue, depicting the late Lakers legend courtside with his daughter Gigi.
Studio Rotblatt Amrany employs about 15 artists and has several upcoming projects.
