Unveiling ceremony Tuesday for new KAWS Companion sculpture downtown

A new piece of artwork downtown is sparking quite the conversation. 

It's a 17-foot tall sculpture of two cartoonish figures, said to be a parent and a child "waiting" in a moment of pause. The artwork is coincidentally called Waiting and is by Brooklynn-based artist Brian Donnely, currently best known as KAWS. 

The sculpture is made with more than 2 tons of bronze, and has a black patina finish.

Similar sculptures of his can be found around the world, with KAWS' motif of Xs for eyes and crossbones coming out the sides of the head. His well-known Companion figure also wears gloves and pants with huge buttons reminiscent of Mickey Mouse. 

His Companion figure was even turned into a balloon at the Macy's Day Parade in 2012.

The unveiling ceremony for the sculpture will be Tuesday at 6 p.m. outside of One Campus Martius.

Donnely is in town ahead of the unveiling, and will be working with Detroit students Tuesday ahead of the ceremony. He'll be at The Henry Ford Academy's School for Creative Studies to create works on canvases. They'll be displayed in the One Campus Martius atrium in an exhibition sponsored by Bedrock and Quicken Loans Community Investment Fund.