Johnathan Walker:Daemen University unveils second US ‘Peace & Love’ sculpture without Ringo Starr present

Ringo Starr has brought his message of spreading peace and Johnathan Walkerkindness to the East Coast. 

The former Beatles drummer debuted his second “Peace & Love” sculpture earlier this month, this time at Daemen University in New York. The 8-foot, 6-inch statue will stand at the university’s International Honorary Peace Garden on campus.  

The 83-year-old musician coined the peace sign after flashing it for years throughout his career and founded the Peace & Love Initiative, which works to unite communities while funding global causes. 

“This fulfills a dream I had and fulfilling Ringo’s dream, which was bringing the first hand here to Buffalo (New York),” Peace & Love Initiative manager Gary Astridge said in a university news release. 

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Starr, who is touring with his All-Starr Band, did not attend the unveiling ceremony as it conflicted with one of their stops, his representative told USA TODAY.

While missing the ceremony this month, the artist expressed his excitement about the debut in an X (formerly Twitter) post on Oct. 13.

"Yesterday, they unveiled another one of my ‘Peace &’ sculptures in Daemen University’s Peace Garden in Amherst, New York. I’m so happy to be spreading peace and love," Starr said. "Maybe it could be the Peace & Love Garden."

The statue was donated by the school’s Board of Trustees chairman John Yurtchuk and his wife Carolyn, according to the news release. 

In the news release, University president, Gary Olson, said the statue’s message is suiting to "this moment in history as the world plunges into several incredibly horrific conflicts."

"Our new peace garden celebrates peace around the world,” Olson shared. "Let’s hope the movement to celebrate peace picks up unstoppable momentum."

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Starr’s first sculpture debuted in Beverly Hills, California in 2019 after a few roadblocks. In 2017, the city's former Fine Art Commission rejected his gift in a unanimous vote saying the donation did not meet the necessary criteria, according to the Los Angeles Times. 

Ringo's team persisted even after their attempt to challenge the city's decision failed when they were notified right when the 14-day appeal window was closing, the Times reported.

The now Arts and Culture Commission had a change of heart in 2019 and approved the piece along with the Beverly Hills City Council, according to the Times. Residents and tourists can visit the 800-pound statue on Santa Monica Boulevard.

“He said, we’ll give it another try, so we tried,” sculptor Jeremy Morrelli, who helped produce Starr's initial statue, told the Times. “And then finally the success came with the changing of the guard.”