Trump Announces Maurizio Cattelan’s “America” as the Throne for His Presidential “Library”

The White House release the preliminary poster for the proposed Trump “library” (image courtesy the White House)

The US President has announced preliminary plans for the “Trump Made America Great” complex in Hudson Yards, which is Manhattan’s newest ultra-luxury neighborhood.

The news emerged after a weekend bender in Riyadh with Mohammad bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. President Donald Trump sent out a flurry of 65 tweets early Monday morning about his plans, including a proposed Presidential “library” that includes a strip club, three mini-golf courses, and a massage parlor that uses liquid gold on the skin of visitors.

Screenshot by the author for Hyperallergic (via @realDonaldTrump)

Trump’s largely incoherent tweets make no mention of his papers or many of the traditional features of other US Presidential Libraries, but he did say mini-golf would play a prominent role in the plans, indicating that a “trifecta of turf mini-courses” were in the works.

The news comes on the heals of a three-day retreat to Saudi Arabia that included a media blackout and rumors of a private party in a desert oasis bar. Images of the event were circulating on Reddit before they were removed by the photographer, whose name was not released by the social media service.

One of the centerpieces of the “Trump Made America Great” complex will be Maurizio Cattelan’s “America” (2016), which Trump announced would be editioned and installed throughout the center. The original one will be installed as part of the center’s Oval Office recreation. The original solid gold toilet will have 24-hour guards and custodians, who will clean the toilet after each use. Visitors will be able to reserve an 8-minute slot via tweet for any time during the day or night in order to enjoy a moment of contemplation on the Presidential throne.

Originally installed in a fourth floor public bathroom at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the golden toilet was initially seen as a critique of American imperialism, but last month the artist told Monocle that it was more of an “ode,” explaining he admired the US President’s aesthetic dedication.

The White House refused to comment on whether other art was planned for the complex, though rumors at this past week’s Art Basel Hong Kong were that an art consultant working for the President bought seven artworks, including a white neon sculpture by Dan Flavin, a white Lucio Fontana painting, Christoph Büchel’s border wall-related legal paperwork, and a few works by postinternet artists that include Pepe the Frog as a motif.

Included among his tweet missives was the suggestion that the plans include a “golden elixir massage room” and a strip club, but those close to the President have suggested it might end up being more of a VR experience.

The architect is expected to be announced on Thursday.