A life-sized statue honoring slain Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk will be unveiled in New York City's Times Square on Sept. 10, marking one year since his assassination, according to the artist who created the tribute.

Sergio Furnari, a Sicilian-born sculptor who has lived in New York for 35 years, said he plans to unveil the metal statue at 2:23 p.m., marking the minute Kirk was killed during a campus event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, one year earlier.

"You know, I'm a New Yorker, so Times Square is like La Piazza," Furnari told the New York Post. "Everything happens in the city, in the center of the town."

While Furnari declined to disclose the exact location, he said the sculpture will be mounted "really high on a truck so that everybody can see."

In an Instagram post, Furnari added: "It's going to be in the middle of Times Square, the center of the universe.”

He also invited supporters to attend, saying, "If you were a big fan of Charlie, this will be your opportunity to maybe find a little bit of peace or harmony."

The statue depicts Kirk wearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with "FREEDOM" and holding a microphone, reflecting the campus debates and speaking events that made him one of the nation's most recognizable conservative leaders.

Furnari said the current version is built with metal framing and industrial resin but hopes to eventually cast it in stainless steel so it is "bulletproof."

Furnari said the project is intended as a statement on free speech rather than partisan politics.

"It's not like I was a fan or somebody that followed him. Actually, I didn't agree with many of his things, but it's about freedom of speech," he told the Post.

Kirk, 31, was fatally shot Sept. 10, 2025, while speaking before a large crowd at Utah Valley University. The killing drew national attention, prompting widespread tributes from conservative leaders and renewed debate over political violence and security at public events.

Turning Point USA, which Kirk co-founded in 2012, grew into one of the country's largest conservative youth organizations, operating chapters on high school and college campuses while organizing major political conferences and voter outreach efforts.

The criminal case against the man accused of killing Kirk remains pending in Utah. Prosecutors have charged Tyler Robinson with aggravated murder and are seeking the death penalty.

A weeklong preliminary hearing concluded this month, during which prosecutors presented surveillance footage, forensic evidence, and witness testimony they contend ties Robinson to the shooting. Defense attorneys challenged the reliability of key DNA and ballistic evidence.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Sept. 1 before Utah state District Judge Tony Graf, who will determine whether prosecutors have presented sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial.

If unveiled as planned, the Times Square tribute will coincide with the first anniversary of Kirk's death and is expected to draw supporters from around the country. Furnari described the installation as both a memorial to Kirk and a broader defense of free expression.