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CHICAGO — Anish Kapoor, the artist behind Chicago’s Cloud Gate, may take legal action after U.S. Border Patrol agents posed in front of his sculpture in Millennium Park early Monday, The Guardian reported. Kapoor, the Indian-born, British sculptor who created the sculpture popularly known as the Bean between 2004 and 2006, said he’s “deeply horrified and saddened that US Border Patrol has chosen to rally in front of Cloud Gate for their self-congratulatory photo-opp.” “In my view they are no different to SS Nazi troops, intimidating citizens and the people they deem to be immigrants,” the 71-year-old artist said in a statement shared with Block Club. “Cloud Gate in Chicago is a place to which citizens and visitors for 20 years now have come together as a place of gathering. “I stand with Mayor Brandon Johnson in his denunciation of Border Patrols activity in Chicago, Chicago will not be silent, indeed the world will not be silent,” Kapoor said. > We are here for YOU Chicago! Since we’ve BEAN here, crime is down: > > ⬇️Homicides down 16% > ⬇️Shootings down 35% > ⬇️Robberies down 41% > ⬇️Carjackings down 48% > ⬇️Transit Crime down 20% > > The United States Border Patrol is dedicated to making American cities safer, one deportation at a… pic.twitter.com/SVJnabMDUX > > — Commander Op At Large CA Gregory K. Bovino (@CMDROpAtLargeCA) November 12, 2025 Kapoor said it was also “particularly tragic” to hear agents were shouting “Little Village” in an effort to intimidate those living in a Mexican-American neighborhood of Chicago. Kapoor’s team didn’t respond to questions regarding Kapoor’s possible legal action. Kapoor told The Guardian a friend who lives in Chicago sent him photos of agents by his sculpture, which Block Club reporter Colin Boyle captured Monday. Most Border Patrol agents involved in Operation At Large are expected to leave the city this week, and Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino has reportedly already left. Bovino has been a visible figure since arriving in Chicago, posing for photo ops aboard a boat on the Chicago River and Downtown — most recently at the Bean. He’s also been an active participant in immigration raids across the city since the launch of Operation Midway Blitz in September and Operation At Large a week later. He’s been on video tear-gassing people in Little Village, among other incidents, and he is at the center of a federal lawsuit challenging agents’ use of force throughout the immigration crackdown. About 200 Border Patrol agents had been conducting operations in the Chicago area recently, a top federal immigration enforcement official previously said. Friends of the Parks, a nonprofit that advocates for Chicago’s green spaces and works to protect and preserve the city’s parks and forests, also issued a statement condemning Border Patrol agents posing in Millennium Park. “Friends of the Parks was shocked and deeply troubled by ICE agents recently posing in front of The Bean (Cloud Gate) in Millennium Park for a photo opportunity,” Executive Director Brian Gladstein said in a statement. “Chicago’s parks are sanctuaries throughout our city that should be places of peace, safety, and community. The millions of people who live, work, and play in our great city should never feel threatened or intimidated in any of our 600-plus parks, especially from our government agencies. “We call on the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District to do everything they can within the law to ensure that such displays of force in our Chicago parks does not happen again.” * * * **Support Local News!** **Subscribe to Block Club Chicago, **an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom. Every dime we make funds reporting from Chicago’s neighborhoods. Already subscribe? **Click here to gift a subscription** , or you can**support Block Club with atax-deductible donation.** **Listen to the Block Club Chicago podcast:** Listen OnApple PodcastsListen OnSpotify No, Groupon Isn’t Dead. It’s Still Based In Chicago And Growing Again. Episode play icon No, Groupon Isn’t Dead. It’s Still Based In Chicago And Growing Again. Episode play icon It Was A Celebrity Hangout. It Closed. 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Workers Say They Weren’t Paid Episode play icon The Rink On 87th Has Been A Haven For 50 Years Episode play icon What Would Happen If Chicago Got Nuked? Episode play icon Can Judges Curb ICE’s Operation Midway Blitz? Load More Search Results placeholder Previous Episode Show Episodes List Next Episode Show Podcast Information https://blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/14/artist-anish-kapoor-horrified-by-border-patrol-agents-posing-with-the-bean/