Ringo Starr's Sculpture Will Finally Live In Beverly Hills

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — Ringo Starr's 800-pound sculpture of his hand flashing a peace sign was finally approved by the Beverly Hills City Council Tuesday night to be installed on Santa Monica Boulevard this fall. The 8-foot-tall polished steel monument, made to honor the city when Starr decided to live in Beverly Hills full-time, was initially declined in 2017 because it didn't meet the criteria of the (now-defunct) Fine Art Commission.

A statement from Starr was read at the City Council meeting, thanking the Mayor and City Council members for considering his sculpture for installation outside City Hall.

"I'd especially like to thank Mayor Mirisch and fellow City Council member Lili Bosse for their passion on this project, as well as the liassons from the Arts and Culture commission and City staff who have helped make this happen. I’ll see you all at the unveiling, Peace and Love — Ringo," Starr's statement said.

A city spokesman told The Los Angeles Times the previous commission “had a narrow criteria” for public art and that the council could overrule it — but it took two years for the sculpture to get approved.

Starr created the "Peace and Love" sculpture decades ago and paid to ship the sculpture when he moved from Britain to Beverly Hills, so the initial rejection came as a surprise, according to sculptor Jeremy Morrelli, who helped Starr produce the version of "Peace and Love" intended for City Hall.

"We want to be a city of love and peace," Mayor John Mirisch told the Beverly Hills Arts and Culture Commission last week. "When you take a picture with City Hall in the background, it symbolizes that."