Jen Reid: Bristol Black Lives Matter statue being removed

Image copyright EPA Image caption Jen Reid posed with her statue, which appeared on the empty plinth on Wednesday

An operation has begun to remove a sculpture of a Black Lives Matter protester from the plinth where the statue of Bristol slave trader Edward Colston once stood.

The sculpture of Jen Reid was erected at the spot where an Edward Colston statue was pulled down during protests.

Ms Reid had been photographed standing on the empty plinth.

Mayor Marvin Rees said it was up to the people of Bristol to decide what would replace the Colston statue.

Image caption The new statue attracted people both supporting it and those against, on Wednesday

The black resin statue, called A Surge of Power, was created by artist Marc Quinn and designed to be a temporary installation to continue the conversation about racism.

He said he was inspired to create it after seeing an image of Ms Reid standing on the plinth with her fist raised during the Black Lives Matter protest on 7 June.

Mr Quinn then contacted Ms Reid through social media and they worked together on the statue, which was erected shortly before 04:30 BST on Wednesday.