From a 2023 WOWT Article:

"'I was really trying to portray the great leadership and courage Chief Big Elk had,” said artist Benjamin Victor. “As a tribal chief, he was a warrior first, but he was also a visionary who saw the problems that were to come.”

Victor has been working on the sculpture for about six months. He wants people to see the strength and dignity of the last blood chief of the Omaha tribe.

“It’s great to recognize and to think back to that history and understand we need to be mindful of our indigenous people in this area and respect the land...that they were here on first,” Victor said.

Judi Gaiashkibos, executive director of the Nebraska Commission on Indian Affairs, tells 6 News the sculpture will give Native children something to look up to.

“Most people think we don’t exist anymore,” Gaiashkibos said. “A lot of people think we’re all gone and dead, but there are a lot of urban Indians that live here in the City of Omaha, so they can come here and they can feel a sense of connection to past history. We’re the first people, but we’ll always be here.”

The Chief Big Elk sculpture is made of clay, with some finishing touches still to come before the piece will be cast in bronze. The artwork will then go to its permanent home on Lewis and Clark Landing on the RiverFront.

“Hopefully it will give recognition in the space where people [can] study and learn that these people were already here before the settlement came and they lived on this land,” Gaiashkibos said. “They loved this land, and it was a part of them spiritually.'"