Sunday, March 9, 2014

Weekly Post: Erik Burns


This article, written by CNN deals with the most recent, as well as with the past tragedies that have occurred to artist: Florentijn Hofman’s Rubber Duck.  The authors took care to discuss both the possibility that a ‘jealous’ hawk sabotaged the instillation, or that it was simply the hot sun.  The 18-meter high rubber duck seems to be highly received by the citizens of each town that the duck has traveled to thus far.  The fun nature of the instillation even inspired a group in Belgium to stake out and guard the duck after it had been repaired from its violent stabbings (42 knife wounds were reported.) 
            The authors described the reaction of locals in Taiwan after the deflation of the massive rubber creature.  The incident “le[ft] locals shocked and disappointed.”  As the duck travels around the world from port to port, it is exposed to a multitude of natural, and manmade elements.  The result of the duck’s delicate medium, and the potential for hazard has evoked citizens take it upon themselves to ‘monitor the duck’s vital signs’. 

            I am fond of this article because it demonstrated the connection that people grow with public art in their cities.  I am very interested to hear more about the duck as it moves around the world, and adopts new communities of followers, (maybe the duck will even make its way across the ocean to the west coast.) 


6 comments:

  1. Thank-You! Thank-You! Thank-You Eric!!! Everything has been so heavy in this class that I'm ecstatic to review your "Rubber Duck" article! I choose to believe that it was a jealous eagle or some other kind of bird that sabotaged this beautiful piece of art while it was in Taiwan because I have been to Taiwan and I don't believe there is a person in that country that would do such a thing! Everyone that I met there has a huge amount of respect for the art community and artwork in general. In fact, they seem to be the most respectful people that I know of, all together. I do believe that the locals WERE "shocked and disappointed" when this happened there. I just refuse to believe that anyone, anywhere would STAB a rubber ducky 42 times, let alone once ~ which would have probably done the trick ~ putting Florentijn Hofman's "Rubber Duck" to a slow death.

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  2. This kind of reminds me of the anti-monuments that we looked at during class, especially the dropped ice cream cone on the German gallery. It is an everyday object that has been enlarged. The floating rubber duck which sails the oceans doesn't necessarily have to mean or represent something in particular but it can simply be there to amuse the viewers and get them thinking. I really hope the destruction was due to natural causes because it may be okay to destroy your own art but not that of another person, referring back to artist Ai Weiwei.

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  3. This article made me think of our countries time honored tradition of showcasing the huge character shaped balloons in our major parades. When I was a little girl I was extremely excited to watch the Holiday Parades. I was glued to the T.V anticipating the arrival of my favorite cartoon shaped balloon named Snoopy. Although I reached an age where I became less fascinated by these parades, I still tune in every year to see Snoopy fly high above the crowds and in between skyscrapers. Fkorentijn Hofman's "Rubber Duck" is almost like our countries high flying parade balloons in the sense that it is a purposely gigantic piece of artwork produced to excite and entertain its viewers. Much like the people of Taiwan, I would be incredibly disappointed if anyone defiled or sabotaged our parade balloons. I hope the "Rubber Duck" went out of commission due to natural causes, however it seems to me that more and more people today are exhibiting a blatant disregard for respecting and preserving individuals works of Art. It was nice to know that there are people still out there that will help protect these monumental and traditional pieces of culture.

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  4. This is a wonderful article to review this week! Like Lorena, this giant rubber duck does remind me of the anti-monuments that we were discussing in class. I was disappointed that I could not get to the article that discussed how the giant rubber ducky was born, for some reason I do not have access to that page. I find it really interesting that an installation such as this is so well received. I also agree that sometimes I do need a "cute fix" within the art world, something that doesn't have such a heavy message behind it. I enjoy the nostalgia of the rubber ducky, remembering times as a small child in the bathtub with my own rubber ducky and other related bath time toys. I find it hilarious how the author discusses the jealousy of the eagle as the possible culprit for it's deflation/demise. It would be an amazing site to witness Hofman's rubber duck crossing the seas because it does speak to the idea of the oceans being our world's shared bathtub, and I wonder if greater care would be given if more people saw the oceans in the same way.

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  5. Seeing this week's article, I was ecstatic to review Hofman’s Rubber Duck! I enjoy how something as simple as an inflatable rubber duck can bring universal nostalgia no matter what culture. Personally, It reminds me of the annual Rubber Duck race the Nevada Humane Society puts on, and the feelings of going to a summer carnival and seeing the ducks swirl slowly in a plastic tub. Seeing an installation that travels of this size and delicacy getting deflated unfortunately does not surprise me, seeing as there are so many factors the can play into the integrity of it. It does sadden me to know that someone had stabbed it 42 times while it was in Belgium, but this act of vandalism serves as a great example as to how a public and well-recognized art installation can unite a city's inhabitants. I can't wait to hear more about this duck's travels and I hope it continues to bring more nostalgia to the viewers.

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  6. The giant duck is a great and refreshing piece of art to look at! It seems as if there are so many stories and theories on how the duck popped, that it makes for great commentary about this large piece of work. I think this is a wonderful piece from Florentijn Hofman, even though its been deflated, its still a light and fun piece. How impressive is it that locals staked out to protect the lifeless rubber duckey?! I believe most anyone can relate to the duck, memories of childhood and dreaming in large sizes really captures its essence.

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