Mary Bowerman

USA TODAY

A statue of a dog peeing appeared next to the "Fearless Girl" statue in NYC for a few hours on Monday.

The statue, coined "Sketchy Dog," was placed next to "Fearless Girl" statue's legs, creating the appearance that the dog was urinating on the statue, NBC reported. Artist Alex Gardega told NBC that most people were amused by his faux bronze and clay statue, but others "were upset and kicked it."

Gardega told NBC he created "Sketchy Dog" in a show of support for sculptor Arturo Di Modica, who created the iconic "Charging Bull" statue in New York City's financial district. Di Modica says the city and an investment company violated his rights by installing the newly popular “Fearless Girl” statue near his creation without permission for what amounts to a commercial ad campaign.

"I have a lot of empathy for the creator of the bull, Arturo," Gardega told NBC. "He is very upset."

While Gardega told NBC he created the work with a sense of humor and not as an "anti-feminist" message, on social media, many disagreed and slammed Gardega for promoting "misogyny" and "hatred for women."

Speaking at a Manhattan news conference in April, Di Modica, 76, said he installed the bull in front of the New York Stock Exchange in 1987 as a symbol of America’s resilience following the stock market crash that year. The city later relocated the sculpture to a small public park nearby.

"The bull represents strength," Di Modica said. "The strength of America, the strength of the market."

In the years since, "Charging Bull" has become one of the city's most popular attractions, drawing tourists from all over the world.

"Fearless Girl," with hands confidently placed on hips, was installed in front of the bull on the eve of the annual commemorations of International Women's Day. Boston-based State Street Global Advisors has said it commissioned the new artwork as part of its call on behalf of the more than 3,500 companies that benefit from its clients' investments to ensure that corporate governing boards feature diversity.

Created by artist Kristen Visbal, the new sculpture virtually overnight became a new symbol of a lack of gender diversity and equality on Wall Street and in other U.S. workplaces.

Now, along with flocking to Di Modica's creation, tourists also vie to take selfies with "Fearless Girl," and other photos that showcase the young beauty staring down the beast.

Di Modica said the "Fearless Girl" statue changes the meaning of his work.

"What they did, it's a negative," Di Modica said of the new message conveyed by "Fearless Girl." Now, the message is "I'm here, what are you going to do," he said.

More coverage:

'Charging Bull' artist says 'Fearless Girl' violated his rights

Let 'Fearless Girl' stay: Opposing view

Send ‘Fearless Girl’ on tour: Our view

Contributing: Kevin McCoy