Trump shares renderings of proposed ‘Independence Arch’

President Donald Trump on Friday shared three renderings of a proposed triumphal arch, dubbed the “Independence Arch,” that he plans to build in Washington, D.C.

Trump shared images of the three renderings in a post to his Truth Social platform without additional commentary. Further details have not been provided by the White House, which did not respond to requests for comment from Urgent Matter.

The first of the three renderings shows a large neoclassical triumphal arch set in a landscaped public plaza, heavily ornamented with gold-colored sculptural elements.

In it, two gilded humanoid figures in classical dress are positioned in niches on each side of the arch. The figures appear allegorical, with idealized features and no clear markers identifying them as specific historical individuals.

Separate from these statues, gold-colored sculptural objects mounted on pedestals appear to resemble eagles with spread wings. Their forms, however, are anatomically unclear, with wings, bodies, and negative space blending together in ways that obscure their intended structure.

Next to it, the second rendering shows most decorative elements rendered in white stone rather than gold. The two large standing statues have been swapped from allegorical figures to what appears to be Abraham Lincoln on the left and another historical figure resembling George Washington on the right, though the figure is not clearly identified.

And the third rendering, a stripped-down version of the second, shows the arch largely undecorated with minimal relief detail and no statues or gilded elements. Each of the three renderings features the text “Independence Arch” above the arch’s opening.

The renderings have details that strongly suggest they were created with the use of A.I., most obviously seen in the lettering of the “Independence Arch” text in each image.

The letter spacing is not consistent across the phrase in any of the renderings, with the kerning changing mid-word. In the word "Arch," the leg of the “R” and the curve of the “C” have melted together, creating a character that looks more like a Cyrillic letter or a glitchy "N” so that the word looks like "ANCH."

This kind of typographic warping is extremely common when using generative A.I. but extremely rare in professional renderings. In real architectural lettering, especially on a national monument, this would be one of the most controlled elements.

Environmentally, the three images are visually similar with the same kinds of crowds and natural elements that appear identical on first glance, but with subtle differences when examined closer. A couple in the bottom right corner of the first image appears to have correct anatomy, but in the second and third images, their limbs blend into the ground.

Some people placed in front of elements in the first image that are removed in the latter two also do not appear in those images, suggesting precision A.I. changes. And lines in the flooring in the second and third images do not properly align.

The shadows of the people do not match the light source of the sun in the images, laurel motifs don’t mirror perfectly, and the arch opening is oddly proportioned.

The renderings shared by Trump through Truth Social are at a low resolution with heavy JPEG compression, which adds a layer of artifacting that can make things look distorted. But there is a fundamental difference between losing information through pixelation and creating wrong information, an A.I. hallucination.

Trump released the renderings nearly a month after he told Politico that construction on the arch would begin within two months.

In recent months, the Trump administration has said the arch may be built near the Lincoln Memorial. It was not immediately clear if that site has been locked in.

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