Schuman sculpture marks 70 years since Universal Declaration of Human Rights

A giant sculpture celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been unveiled in the middle of Schuman roundabout.

Artist Cristobal Gabarron's sculpture, Enlightened Universe, consists of a six-metre-high reflective sphere and brightly coloured metal cutouts of human like shapes holding hands and dancing around the sphere.

Gabarron told The Bulletin: "The sphere is a mirror in pieces, it reflects oneself when one looks at the sphere, but the image is not whole. We may not fully understand others but we must have respect. Lack of respect leads to conflict. That is the principal idea behind the work."

The work was inaugurated on Thursday in the presence of Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs & Security Policy and Barbara Pesce-Monteiro, United Nations Director for Brussels.

Deborah Seward, Director of the United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe, said: "What we are really trying to do is to symbolise and bring people together around human rights, around common EU-UN values. It's really something that touches the soul.

"The artist has been working with the United Nations for a long time - it’s been a long relationship that we’ve had. This is the third place where we have actually brought it - it’s been in New York, in Geneva and now it’s in the heart of Europe."