Urban Fox becomes interactive inversion
A GIANT upside-down truck will take the place of the “Urban Fox” and become the new star of the city’s sculpture biennial in Jing’an District.
“Stand quiet and look out over the Mediterranean Sea,” by Austrian artist Erwin Wurm will be unveiled at the 2018 Jing’an International Sculpture Project held from September 20 to December 20.
This year’s show will feature 87 works by 40 artists from 14 countries and regions, mostly at Jing’an Sculpture Park, but some can be seen at Daning Park and Shibei High Technology Park.
Wurm’s work will replace the giant metal and straw fox that was the big draw at the last biennial. The installation was taken down last month.
“Stand quiet and look out over the Mediterranean Sea” is part of Wurm’s “One Minute Sculptures” series that captivated the cognoscenti during the 2017 Venice Biennial. It is an interactive work that requires the public to follow the artist’s instructions.
A staircase leads to an observation platform at the “top” of the truck where people are asked, somewhat unsurprisingly, to stand quietly and imagine that they are looking out over the Mediterranean Sea.
“Wurm wants people to not be restricted by what they actually see but to extend the limits of their imaginations,” said organizer Mao Wencai.
Other works include a bronze sculpture of German poet Friedrich Holderlin, a column of aluminum faces with different expressions and an astronaut floating in space.
Gong Mingjun of Jing’an’s greenery authority, said sculpture has become a distinguishing feature of the district.
“In 2016, we extended the exhibition from Jing’an Sculpture Park to Daning Park. This year we have included Shibei High Technology Park, home of the city’s big data experts and startup entrepreneurs. We hope to reach out to other areas in the future.”