KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports, Olivia Grange says she is happy to receive word that the Jamaican sculptor, Basil Watson, has been selected to create a monument in honour of the American civil rights icon, Martin Luther King Jr.

Grange said that Watson, who has created sculptures of Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce under contract with her ministry, was given the nod to design the tribute to Martin Luther King, which will be erected in Atlanta, Georgia.

Grange said: “I am very proud that Basil Watson, an outstanding Jamaican artist, has been selected to develop a monument celebrating the life of Martin Luther King Jr.

“Basil has been one of our leading sculptors and this is recognition of the great work that he does and an endorsement of Jamaican talent. I look forward to his design, which I know will be awesome and inspiring.”

The Martin Luther King monument is due for completion by the end of 2019.

Watson is currently designing monuments in honour of Jamaican athletes Veronica Campbell Brown and Asafa Powell.