Uh- is this a belated April Fools Day prank?

I was thinking the same thing. Seems like LAND Studio has lost it's touch, the last couple projects they've worked on/proposed are disappointing and uninspired.

^I think their public space design coordination is a lot better than their public art curation.

 

That said, I actually don't hate this first installation (and expect to be lonely with that view!). I don't understand why the artists don't tailor their choice of animals to the local ecology, but whatever. It's color in our bland downtown, it's slightly weird, the things can actually be interacted with, and it's temporary, so no permanent or even long term harm like the awful Senior Games sculpture, firefighters memorial, and cancer survivor's plaza. 

Yea I don't mind this for some reason. People will like it, photograph it, kids will play with it, I don't see it as a bad thing. That sail thing on the mall though.... And the Senior Games flame?!  I walked by there yesterday and it just sits there in a muddy hole with fencing around it. That has to go ASAP

 

 

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I like the idea of color, and a bit of whimsey, but I would have nightmares from the meerkat group about to attack from the roof of the convention center.

 

Since these animals have no connection to northeast Ohio, it just kind of looks like the group plan commission went to Target and went crazy on cheap, plastic lawn ornaments.  I mean, why not flamingos?

^I think their public space design coordination is a lot better than their public art curation.

 

That said, I actually don't hate this first installation (and expect to be lonely with that view!). I don't understand why the artists don't tailor their choice of animals to the local ecology, but whatever. It's color in our bland downtown, it's slightly weird, the things can actually be interacted with, and it's temporary, so no permanent or even long term harm like the awful Senior Games sculpture, firefighters memorial, and cancer survivor's plaza. 

I guess I missed it when I first saw the article, but the photos of what the sculptures look like in real life are MUCH better than the renderings. However, I feel like the rendering of the lawn on public square looks really crowded and detracts from the new square. Guess I'll have to wait and see what it looks like when installed. But still, I'm glad it's temporary.

While I applaud the Fowler's for donating this money, I agree....these would not be my first choice.

Just saw it up close today, love the trees and hills. 

 

There's an area around the NW edge where the hill is interrupted by a concrete wall and becomes small cliff, with dropoffs just high enough to raise safety concerns.  I assume there will be railings or some such?  Not clear why they didn't just go with a smoother slope.  As we've seen recently, railings don't solve everything.

OMG the plastic animals. Maybe someone will steal them all before RNC in July.

While I think the creatures looked strange in the renderings, the pics from the Italian installation at the end of the slide show changed my opinion and actually look cool to me, especially the internally lit penguins and the ones placed on the historic buildings.  I think they will encourage people to interact with them.  Someone once said DT Cleveland was to beige and grey and drab...well this certainly adds pops of color and fun!  Fun things like this may also encourage families to come back down to public square.  In Cincinnati I was amazed at the families enjoying a movie on the square on a Thursday evening.  I see PS having that same vibe now.

Sounds great but they haven't scheduled any movies, they scheduled plastic animals.  I vote for movies!

Isn't this the same artist that does the penguins for the 21C hotels? If so, this will be fantastic. Those renderings look like they were done by the intern, so I get the concern, but look at the actual photos of the installations elsewhere. They're great.

 

In the 21C in Cincinnati they're within a high end restaurant and rooftop bar and people LOVE to move them to be by their tables, take pictures with them, talk about the goofy giant yellow penguins around, etc. They're significantly more interactive than you'd imagine.

 

I'm excited for them.

Thanks for this!  Looking very good. Happy to see the trees appear to be alive. Not sure why so many of the ginkgoes are bent near the top, though. Hopefully they straighten themselves out (literally).

 

I have no expertise except for my own DIY landscaping around my house, but I've done the same in the past with the 'lopsided' portion of the tree to the north.  Over the years, the southern exposure of the sun will even it out.  But the question is why didn't they just buy well-centered trees to begin with?

I generally like to stay positive...  but....  WTF....

I like the idea of color, and a bit of whimsey, but I would have nightmares from the meerkat group about to attack from the roof of the convention center.

 

Since these animals have no connection to northeast Ohio, it just kind of looks like the group plan commission went to Target and went crazy on cheap, plastic lawn ornaments.  I mean, why not flamingos?

 

Yeah at least then we could say it was an homage to Parma

Thanks MrClifton88 for the great pics of the new Public Square which is really coming together  - It's going to be top shelf..

I do wish there was a little more "green" in its design - but we're not seeing a final product yet...

I'm just thankful that a coalition of people in town pulled together, worked hard, and are making this a reality for the city -

(I can't imagine how Sherwin-Williams or some major company could not want a sparkling corporate headquarters towering from that remaining empty lot next to the square.) 

Having said that, it was quite a juxtaposition to go from seeing the new pics of the square

and then going directly to the article illustrating the new animal art that will be added.  I'm trying to keep an open mind - maybe it's going to be one of those things "you have to live with for awhile to appreciate" - but it looks very...um......"plastic"... 

Then again -  who knows? - maybe kids and families will love it and it will add to the growing popularity of the city as a tourist destination.

I think that's a stretch, but I hope its the case..   

Outdoor art coming to Public Square and the Mall before Republican National Convention (Photos)

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio – A $1.5 million grant to the nonprofit LAND Studio from the Char and Chuck Fowler Family Foundation of Cleveland will kick off three years of temporary outdoor art installations on the renovated Public Square and the Mall, starting just before the Republican National Convention.

 

Beginning in June, the Italian art collective Cracking Art, based in Milan, will install hundreds of colorful plastic meerkats, wolves, swallows, frogs and snails on the Mall and at the Cleveland Public Library and adjacent Eastman Reading Garden.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/architecture/index.ssf/2016/04/outdoor_art_coming_to_public_s.html#incart_river_home

 

Everything about this confuses me

 

I am withholding any comment on LAND Studio.  However, this installation seems to fit the desire for Instagram[able] public art.  See, for example, the recent addition (temporary) to Rockefeller Center -- "Van Gogh's Ear" -- a giant upright swimming pool.  It is getting a lot of attention and visitors.  No matter how silly the Cleveland installation may seem, it'll grab attention.  Also, the Fowlers are some of the nicest people you could meet. 

I was just about devastated to see those renderings. Especially the meerkats on top of the conventions center. For the sake of our city I hope these turn out better than they look, and reading some of the other comments here, I have some slight hope now. But this, following on the heels of the things planned for Mall C, I really don't trust LAND when it comes to public art anymore. Are they also behind the giant speakers plan?

RE: LAND Studio's choices in public art

 

Too many decisions on what belongs on public spaces are being determined by this small group of individuals.  Their taste for art is becoming one note and I believe better choices were made when Parkworks existed. I want to know how Land Studio gets to determine what gets put on public spaces. I recommend these installations be voted upon the community.  I recommend anyone against these choices let Land Studio and The Group Plan Commission  know your opinions .  Btw I believe Land Studio is under investigation since almost all projects have been awarded to them.  The conflict is Joe Cimperman is married to Nora Romanoff  and she has been put in charge of both Public Square and the art/landscape  management of The Malls.

Big giant plastic pink meerkats. S.M.F.H. Why do we have to ruin everything

These are extremely cool. People, kids in particular, are going to love them. They should put even more of them.

 

It'll be interesting to see how many of the moveable ones are stolen...good thing they've budgeted for that.

I love it! Just reading all the negative comments on here means that this public art installation is something very "Different" and probably a really cool thing for Cleveland and from what I see will be fantastic. Bring it on!

People are being overly dramatic. Nothing is being "ruined" and being "devastated" about a temporary art installation is a tad over the top. They'll  come and go, like most public art, and they'll have garnered a lot of public attention in the time they're here.

 

Public art should never be "by committee" because then it winds up being incredibly mundane, stirs nobody's feelings, is very rarely interesting enough, for better or worse, to grab the attention of the general public, etc.

 

This installation is doing all those things and doing it in strides. Which is perfect. And if you don't like it, that's perfectly fine, but it's temporary and won't be around forever so there's nothing to fret over.

People are being overly dramatic. Nothing is being "ruined" and being "devastated" about a temporary art installation is a tad over the top. They'll  come and go, like most public art, and they'll have garnered a lot of public attention in the time they're here.

 

Public art should never be "by committee" because then it winds up being incredibly mundane, stirs nobody's feelings, is very rarely interesting enough, for better or worse, to grab the attention of the general public, etc.

 

This installation is doing all those things and doing it in strides. Which is perfect. And if you don't like it, that's perfectly fine, but it's temporary and won't be around forever so there's nothing to fret over.

 

I disagree.

 

What is being ruined is that the attention of the newly redesigned Public Square will be overshadowed by a bunch of oversized children's toys. Many other great aspects of the CLE's downtown; the Group Plan, North Coast Harbor, other architectural assets, etc., will all be overlooked IMO by the majority of visitors during this art installations run.

 

I think the national and international news media during the RNC will have a field day with this art installation, mainly negative. We'll be hearing comments like "they call that art", "why would a city put a bunch of oversized toys on display for the public". The news media will also tie this art installation into the RNC itself, comparing the Republicans to the "toys".

 

This art installation is not needed at all, even temporarily. Let the visitors coming for the RNC, or any visitor to downtown CLE enjoy what the CLE has always offered; beautiful architecture, great restaurants, entertainment venues, sports venues, Playhouse Square. Cleveland's long time assets are what should be highlighted during the RNC, not a temporary bunch of "toys".

 

If the donors, and the artist of the art installation still want to do something with the art pieces, then move the art installation to the CLE Metropark's Zoo. That is a better location.

 

Last time I checked children's toys weren't larger than I am, but I guess if that's your opinion you're allowed to have it.

 

But, like I mentioned upthread, these are the same as the 21C's penguins which garnered a lot of really positive press about how fun they were when they were placed around Downtown Cincinnati prior to the hotel's opening. Nobody called them oversized children's toys because that wasn't the consensus. The consensus was that they were a fun, colorful, whimsical piece of temporary art that didn't take itself seriously.

Oh no, not ART! 

<<gasp!>> No, not Thaaaaaat! :cry:

 

Public Art will ruin Cleveland's repution. 

Oh misery why do you rain down on our city; Why this endless embarrassment?

 

WORLD FAMOUS ARTISTS STAY AWAY FROM CLEVELAND! (and our princess-perfect parks.)

You've got to have some kind of inner shame or lack of confidence in your city if you think some pink artwork will somehow tarnish your image.  These will create positive buzz for the city. Yes, some will poke fun, but I promise, if you look at the source of where that small amount of negativity is going to come from, you'll realize that source hates everything. Overall, the national media buzz will be quite positive, and help Clevelands image move in a positive direction.

 

A chandelier hanging over a city intersection has to be one of the most bizarre things ever. But guess what people take pictures of when they visit Playhouse Square? Exactly.

There's something to be said for whimsical public art, but I just don't think this will achieve that in any meaningful way. The 21c penguins work well at the hotel, but imagine if they were scattered all over Fountain Square. It would make the square look cluttered and the penguins would be out of place, because obviously they have no relation to the city or region. The penguin is the symbol of 21c, so it works there. Last time I checked, meerkats weren't the symbol of Cleveland.

 

If you want to look at two public art installations that were similar in intent, but executed very well, I think Cincinnati's "Big Pig Gig" and Denver's towering bear peering into to their convention center are both good places to look. The Big Pig Gig worked because it played on the flying pig 'mascot' of Cincy, and each pig was different and designed by local groups of artists. They were funny, creative, and relevant to Cincy's history and culture. The installation in Demver is a massive blue bear on its hind legs, looking into the convention center windows. The bear makes sense, as it's obviously a symbol of the Rocky Mountain wilderness that lays just beyond Denver's boundaries. The fact that it's blue gives a whimsical, creative vibe to the installation, and the size and singularity of it combine to make the bear a true landmark in the downtown landscape. These small plastic creatures that have no relevance to Cleveland will do little beyond cluttering up the first rate redesign of public square, IMO. There are better ways to add color to the landscape.

They were scattered around the city briefly before 21C opened as a way to advertise. They were on Fountain Square, on random street corners, at the riverfront, etc. They got picked up and moved around so they wound up all over the place. They didn't have anywhere near the number this installation would have obviously, but they weren't restricted to just the hotel since the hotel wasn't open yet. But they were seen as something to go out and find and take pictures with. And people did. And the press was positive about the yellow penguins.

^ I vaguely remember a couple penguins being scattered about downtown in the week or so before 21c opened. It was a promotional tool for the hotel, and everyone was pretty excited about 21c opening, so it makes sense they were received well. If scores of penguins were scattered around Fountain Square when it reopened after its renovation, do you think they would have been received similarly?

I'm sure they would have drawn a lot of people to Fountain Square to see them and get their photo with them. And based on the fact that people think they're great (regardless of their connection to the hotel) I think they would have been received quite well, yes.

 

This is a few hundred spread out over an area of like 30 acres. It's not going to be a swarm of them in one location so I don't think they'll be as overwhelming as people are thinking.

Cinci's pig thing was the same as Cleveland's guitar thing and every other city's cow/other animal thing. This particular installation is a different animal. Conceptually, it's completely different.

Cinci's pig thing was the same as Cleveland's guitar thing and every other city's cow/other animal thing.

 

Actually the big pig gig was among the first of its kind of that type of installation (1999), and its success inspired many other cities to replicate the effort, often much less successfully. Cleveland's guitars, for example, didn't occur til 2012. For this type of public art (read: non-mural) to 'work', it has to be innovative and executed well. I don't think this particular installation will be disastrous for Cleveland or anything like that, but I don't think it's an innovative concept, and I think it could end up looking pretty tacky. Find something new and fresh- that's what gets people talking.

I sense a sort of heavy irony that you say, "that's what gets people talking" when just the mere announcement of this installation has made this thread more active than it has been in ages, if not ever. It's already making people talk. And definitely will when installed.

My feeling is that it is a very polarizing project. Some will think it's fun, some will think it's dumb.  I don't know why Cleveland, who has been working so hard for 5 decades or more to attract an event the magnitude of the RNC, would go for polarizing and not just let the energy of our visitors be focused on the great food, neighborhoods, beer, museums, theatre, etc.  make no mistake, people will make fun of this.

^Little over reacting? So I look at the Public art inside the 5th St Arcades as a sign of the success of this project. Every time I walk through there, there is a family stopped so that their children can play on the plastic swivel artwork. It's simple, colorful, and draws people in. The meerkats blocking the views of the lake from the Mall might be a bit much though

 

Cinci's pig thing was the same as Cleveland's guitar thing and every other city's cow/other animal thing.

 

Actually the big pig gig was among the first of its kind of that type of installation (1999), and its success inspired many other cities to replicate the effort, often much less successfully. Cleveland's guitars, for example, didn't occur til 2012. For this type of public art (read: non-mural) to 'work', it has to be innovative and executed well. I don't think this particular installation will be disastrous for Cleveland or anything like that, but I don't think it's an innovative concept, and I think it could end up looking pretty tacky. Find something new and fresh- that's what gets people talking.

 

 

 

Actually Guitarmania started in Cleveland in 2002.  But I believe the Cleveland Asiatown animals project was going on before that.

 

 

CowParade is the originator of the personalized fiberglass animal thing. Cinci was an early imitator, with the twist of applying the idea to its own animal, which was a nice touch. But it was still a direct imitation.

 

But CowParade itself is an interesting example to dissect. It was an art installation by well known swiss artist, first deployed in Zurich. The Chicago cows (the most famous example of the concept in the US) weren't a knock-off, they were that same artist's work recreated in Chicago, commissioned by a local businessman. Sort of like the Louise Bourgeois spiders traveling to various cities as temporary installations. The thing proposed for Public Square is the same idea. It's a recognizable artwork by an international artist redeployed in a new setting.  That's not to say it's great for those reasons (art needs to stand on its own two fee, IMHO), but the context is different from all the CowParade knock-offs.

 

And in any case, the art itself is completely different. It emphasizes the uniformity of modern manufacturing and the globalization (and commodification) of art. After thinking about it some more, the fact that the animal selection isn't superficially reimagined to match the the local ecology is actually a feature in my eyes, not a bug.

 

[typo]

From an article in the Cincinnati Enquirer in 2004: 

 

The trend of public art projects that have featured decorated animals began in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1998, when 800 painted cows appeared around the city.

 

Chicago jumped on the bovine bandwagon in 1999, installing 360 cows to commemorate the cow that allegedly kicked over a lantern and started the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.

 

Since then, at least 21 other cities have had their own cow parades. Other communities, including Cincinnati, have looked elsewhere on land, sea and in popular culture for inspiration for their own projects. Here are some notable ones:

 

Festival of Fins, New Orleans, 2000 (200 fish)

 

Peanuts on Parade, St. Paul, Minn., 2000 (101 Snoopys)

 

Big Pig Gig, Cincinnati, 2000 (425 pigs)

 

Moose in the City, Toronto, 2000 (325 moose)

 

Mr. Potato Heads, Rhode Island, 2000 (47 Potato Heads)

 

Herd about Buffalo, Buffalo, N.Y., 2000 (150 buffalo)

 

Mermaids on Parade, Norfolk, Va., 2000 (130 mermaids)

 

SharkByte Art, San Jose, Calif., 2001 (96 sharks)

 

It's Reigning Frogs, Toledo, 2001 (110 frogs)

 

The Ewe Revue, Rochester, Mich., 2001 (45 sheep)

 

The People Project, St. Louis, 2001 (180 figures)

 

Dolphins on Parade, Florida Keys, 2001 (102 dolphins)

 

Pigs on Parade, Seattle, 2002 (200 pigs)

 

Overalls All Over: An American Gothic Happening, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 2002 (29 couples)

 

Gallopalooza: Louisville's Sidewalk Derby, Louisville, 2004 (200 horses planned)

http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2004/06/14/tem_monlede14side3.html

 

 

This art just made me hate this project even more.  I want to see Public Square of 1910.  A bustling hub for transit and commerce in the middle of our city. 

Not a "Playplace" next to the food court in the mall.  Blahhhhh!

This art just made me hate this project even more.  I want to see Public Square of 1910.  A bustling hub for transit and commerce in the middle of our city. 

Not a "Playplace" next to the food court in the mall.  Blahhhhh!

 

Unfortunately, the 1910 version of Cleveland is not the 2016 version.

The meerkats blocking the views of the lake from the Mall might be a bit much though

 

You can move them. Or push them...

This art just made me hate this project even more.  I want to see Public Square of 1910.  A bustling hub for transit and commerce in the middle of our city. 

Not a "Playplace" next to the food court in the mall.  Blahhhhh!

 

Unfortunately, the 1910 version of Cleveland is not the 2016 version.

 

The only difference is population and jobs.  I'd rather work on those problems than trying to make a suburban park in the middle of the city. 

Is it an either or?

...how is this park suburban in any manner at all? What a ridiculous argument. Show me one suburban park that emulates this environment please.

...how is this park suburban in any manner at all? What a ridiculous argument. Show me one suburban park that emulates this environment please.

 

*proves his statement was BS*

*proves his statement was BS*

 

Oh c'mon people.  Get a sense of humor.  But you have to admit, it's not far off from this....

 

 

Ugh.

Oy. I'm happy the project is coming along, and they're trying to think of ways to make it appeal to different people, and maybe it's just a really bad set of renderings...

 

...BUT this seems like a pretty misguided/lazy concept to me.