The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Los Angeles has acquired "Unmanned Drone" (2023), a significant bronze sculpture by Kara Walker. The work was created by dissecting and reassembling a decommissioned 1921 monument of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson, which was removed from Charlottesville, Virginia, following the 2017 "Unite the Right" rally. The acquisition was announced alongside more than 150 other new additions to the museum's permanent collection, including major works by Cynthia Daignault and Paul Pfeiffer.
This acquisition is a major institutional statement on how museums engage with the legacy of white supremacy and the ongoing national debate over Confederate iconography. By transforming a symbol of the Confederacy into a "Frankensteinian" critique of American history, MOCA is positioning itself at the center of contemporary discourse regarding monument removal and historical reckoning. The move also highlights MOCA's aggressive collecting strategy under its current curatorial leadership, focusing on works that challenge traditional historical narratives.