The bust of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy that has stood outside the Place des Arts metro station since 1986 is no longer there. Because he public square in which it stood is being rebuilt as part of the new Symphony Hall project, the statue has been taken away and JFK Square has been renamed Promenade des Artistes. The 113 kg bronze bust of Kennedy, 10 times larger than life, by Hungarian sculptor Paul Lancz was given to the city by Birks. Although it wasn’t an especially good likeness, it was unveiled at a spot on the boulevard between President Kennedy Ave. and de Maisonneuve Blvd. by then mayor Jean Dore on Nov. 28, 1986. Kennedy’s name was given to an avenue that was created when the the metro was being dug behind Place Des Arts, and the street name will stay. Mayor Jean Drapeau named the street for Kennedy six weeks after the president was assassinated in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. A City Hall spokesman says there are plans to relocate the bust, but that “nothing has been decided yet. We have a few places in mind, but nothing definite yet.”
