# Shockingly Ugly Public Art **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 14, 2008, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789 "2008-11-14T23:57:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/1 "2008-11-14T23:57:39Z")
Inspired by the Ugly Building Thread, I just had to share this gem. [http://www.rockymountainroads.com/utah050/i-080\_wb\_exit\_004\_06.jpg](http://www.rockymountainroads.com/utah050/i-080_wb_exit_004_06.jpg) Located off I-80 near the Utah/Nevada line. Not only is it hideous; it’s huge! It says '_ **Welcome to the land of crazies’** _ without using words! ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/2 "2008-11-15T00:11:46Z")
How about anything and everything created by Richard Serra? What a fucking scam artist. [http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=richard+serra&gbv=2](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=richard+serra&gbv=2) ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/3 "2008-11-15T00:13:49Z")
> [@chacoguy420](#): > > Inspired by the Ugly Building Thread, I just had to share this gem. > [http://www.rockymountainroads.com/utah050/i-080\_wb\_exit\_004\_06.jpg](http://www.rockymountainroads.com/utah050/i-080_wb_exit_004_06.jpg) > > Located off I-80 near the Utah/Nevada line. Not only is it hideous; it’s huge! It says '_ **Welcome to the land of crazies’** _ without using words! My wife and I think it’s completely awesome. (We haven’t seen it in person, just the picture you just linked.) -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/4 "2008-11-15T00:14:50Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > How about anything and everything created by Richard Serra? What a fucking scam artist. > > [Google Search](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=richard+serra&gbv=2) Yet again, I can’t see what is supposed to be wrong with this. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/5 "2008-11-15T00:18:48Z")
I like both of those. I’ve seen much worse. [This](http://www.cityofvancouver.us/publicart.asp?menuID=10461&submenuID=10468&itemID=16568) guy’s stuff is all over Portland. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/6 "2008-11-15T00:18:57Z")
It occurs to me I just threadshat. My apologies. It was unintentional. I shall now go retake my potty training courses. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/7 "2008-11-15T00:19:57Z")
> [@DanBlather](#): > > I like both of those. I’ve seen much worse. [This](http://www.cityofvancouver.us/publicart.asp?menuID=10461&submenuID=10468&itemID=16568) guy’s stuff is all over Portland. That’s more like it. Nothing cool about that one IMO. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/8 "2008-11-15T00:23:04Z")
I like the piece in the OP. I’ve actually seen it, and it looks cool… Just this big fake cactus with tennis balls on the end of it’s branches sitting there alone in the desert. Richard “Lemme Make Another Free-standing Wall” Serra, tho… him I could do without. OTOH I love Christo’s stuff. I was in high school near Ft. Lauderdale when he did [Surrounded Islands](http://forums.miamibeach411.com/index.php?/forums/viewthread/2498/) and I thought it was awe inspiring, in a very odd, quirky way. ---
**Author:** ![spoike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/da6949/32.png) [@spoike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spoike)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/9 "2008-11-15T00:28:52Z")
I hope this doesn’t count as threadshitting, but I think it’s awesome. Not awesome enough to drive all the way to see it, mind you, but awesome nonetheless. I love the size and how random it seems, popping up in the middle of the salt flats like that. The colours and mosaic work on the balls remind me vaguely of some of the work of [Niki de Saint Phalle](http://www.nikidesaintphalle.com). I added the link to my folder of whimsical and/or weird public art, which also includes this link: http: [//www.toroller.com/2008/01/03/amazing-weired-statues-manuments-sculptures-of-the-world/](https://www.toroller.com/2008/01/03/amazing-weired-statues-manuments-sculptures-of-the-world/) (link broken due to some NSFW sculptures) that I think I originally saw here. I love that two people can have such completely different reactions to a piece of art. In fact, it’s one of my favourite things about art in general. Thank you for sharing the link, despite your dislike for the sculpture. And, my apologies if this is, in fact, threadshitting. ---
**Author:** ![T\_SQUARE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@T\_SQUARE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T_SQUARE)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/10 "2008-11-15T00:33:21Z")
I’ve always hated Denver’s Dancing Aliens: [noparse][http://lojjic.net/gallery/1000words/20031012-dancing-naked-aliens.jpg](http://lojjic.net/gallery/1000words/20031012-dancing-naked-aliens.jpg)[/noparse] Whatever happened to a statue of a guy riding a horse? ---
**Author:** ![spoike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/da6949/32.png) [@spoike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spoike)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/11 "2008-11-15T00:46:39Z")
> [@T\_SQUARE](#): > > I’ve always hated Denver’s Dancing Aliens: > > [noparse][http://lojjic.net/gallery/1000words/20031012-dancing-naked-aliens.jpg](http://lojjic.net/gallery/1000words/20031012-dancing-naked-aliens.jpg)[/noparse]… Those look like the paler cousins of Calgary’s [Family of Man](http://flickr.com/photos/mouseinthebrain/233239665/). > [@T\_SQUARE](#): > > …Whatever happened to a statue of a guy riding a horse? Well, there’s always [this](http://bp0.blogger.com/_8LNFtlPLalE/SD50g08Zb2I/AAAAAAAADWI/6rVC1CHZGVs/s1600-h/Lucerna+Horse.jpg). Probably not what you meant, though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/12 "2008-11-15T00:48:48Z")
Not quite public art but I’m not too sure about the [Omagh Bombing Memorial](http://www.nwipp-newspapers.com/temporaryimages/bp109924.jpg). It is located on the site of the bomb but IMHO it’s too big for that location. There are [these reflectors](http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/aug/15/northernireland.uksecurity)too that are meant to send sunlight to the heart in the middle of the memorial but I don’t think they work. Dublin’s O’Connell St. has these [yokes](http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Julian_Opie_Darstellung.JPG). They’re animated as walking. I think they look terrible. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/13 "2008-11-15T00:51:06Z")
There’s [this statue of Quetzalcoatl](http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/4/41/San_Jose_Plumed_Serpent.JPG) in San Jose, CA. Up close it’s nicely textured, but if you drive by it looks like a steaming pile from a distance. I’ve heard rumors the artist was pissed at the city and did it on purpose. While the coiled-snake depiction of the plumed serpent of Mesoamerican religion is not [unprecedented](http://www.metahistory.org/images/QuetzalcoatlSculpture.jpg), he’s normally much [more](http://religion.mrugala.net/Ameriques/Quetzalcoatl.jpg) [badass](http://www.redicecreations.com/winterwonderland/quetzalcoatl1.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/14 "2008-11-15T00:56:22Z")
that’s a pretty awesome collection of pics, **spoike**! thx fer sharing the link! ---
**Author:** ![T\_SQUARE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@T\_SQUARE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T_SQUARE)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/15 "2008-11-15T01:08:04Z")
> [@spoike](#): > > Well, there’s always [this](http://bp0.blogger.com/_8LNFtlPLalE/SD50g08Zb2I/AAAAAAAADWI/6rVC1CHZGVs/s1600-h/Lucerna+Horse.jpg). Probably not what you meant, though. 🙂 Dude, I thought you hacked my hard drive and stole my picture for a second there. I’ve seen that, in Prague or Budapest, I’ll have to look up which. I think it’s just in some random building, right? I recall roaming around and seeing that thing and freaking out for a minute. Also, I may have been drunk on absinthe. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/16 "2008-11-15T01:12:56Z")
Well, everybody here in town hates [the world’s largest fire hydrant.](http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/4453) I don’t despise it as much as many do, but I don’t particularly care for it. Especially since the city probably paid a few million of my tax dollars for it. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/17 "2008-11-15T01:18:34Z")
Anyone know the story behind [this](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/26/44616925_114a12788a.jpg)? Joe ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/18 "2008-11-15T01:21:00Z")
Panama has some of the worst public art I’ve ever seen. The absolute nadir is the monument to President Arnulfo Arias, who was literally a fascist (and admirer of Hitler). Arias was elected president of Panama three times, overthrown or deposed three times, and had two other elections stolen from him. It’s actually quite appropriate that his monument is as ugly as it is. [![](http://www.chagres.com/pt-2002-aas-5-a.jpg) ](http://www.chagres.com/pt-2002-aas-5-a.jpg) [http://www.panamacanalcountry.com/images/Monument%20to%20President%20Arnulfo%20Arias%20in%20Amador.jpg](http://www.panamacanalcountry.com/images/Monument%20to%20President%20Arnulfo%20Arias%20in%20Amador.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/19 "2008-11-15T01:28:44Z")
> [@wheresgeorge04](#): > > Anyone know the story behind [this](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/26/44616925_114a12788a.jpg)? Wow, just when I thought that nothing in this thread could make me laugh harder than the man on a horse. I demand the stories behind both! ---
**Author:** ![St.Urho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8e7dd6/32.png) [@St.Urho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/St.Urho)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2008, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789/20 "2008-11-15T01:34:28Z")
> [@T\_SQUARE](#): > > I’ve always hated Denver’s Dancing Aliens: > > [http://lojjic.net/gallery/1000words/20031012-dancing-naked-aliens.jpg](http://lojjic.net/gallery/1000words/20031012-dancing-naked-aliens.jpg) > > Whatever happened to a statue of a guy riding a horse? Yeah, but then you end up with [this horse](http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/18460). It’s at Denver International Airport- glowing red eyes and all! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shockingly-ugly-public-art/472789.md?page=2)