My Dad, in addition to his many and varied other achievements in his long, long life, was a Midwestern artist of some renown from the late ’60s to the mid ’80s. He had a reserved spot in the Iowa State Capitol where one of his paintings was always on display and he was President of the Eastern Iowa Arts Council for a while in the late ’60s. His paintings are a marvel; he did landscapes, closeups of forest life, wildflowers, and birds, and captured them with near-photographic detail.
He also looked at what people call “modern art” with mild disdain. I confess to having a streak of that disdain myself, but in this case, an art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand, has me thinking, well, you’ve got to hand it to them.
Perched on two fingers on the roof of an art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand, the giant sculpture of a hand has loomed over the city for five years.
Named Quasi, the 16 feet — almost 5 meters — creation of Australia-based sculptor Ronnie van Hout bears an unsmiling human face — because why not?
Some found it disturbing, and now, after five years of provoking controversy and myriad emotions — from horror and revulsion to delight — among residents of New Zealand’s capital, Quasi will be removed from the roof of City Gallery this week.
It will be taken to a new home, the gallery said Wednesday.
Here, have a look for yourself:
You’ve got to… hand it to New Zealand. https://t.co/LHbEtm7pFg pic.twitter.com/KoYHsvELAJ
— Ward Clark (@TheGreatLander) October 30, 2024
Something is unsettling about that sculpture, but I can’t quite put my finger on it. Unlike Tim Walz, I’m no knucklehead, but I don’t find Quasi very handsome.
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One might note that Quasi strikes something of a sinister figure, being, after all, a left hand. The artist who came up with this masterpiece had to have been hand-picked. Rumor has it that when Quasi was first unveiled, musical performers were present to serenade him – including one Palm McCartney.
Speculation apparently abounds about where Quasi is off to.
The sculpture has adorned the Wellington skyline during “some of its most difficult times,” McNulty said. The city has struggled with earthquake-prone buildings, widespread plumbing problems and political division in recent years.
Other comments took guesses about where Quasi might end up.
“He’s going to The Hague,” wrote one New Zealander on X.
“He will be missed,” said Jane Black, who heads the Wellington Sculpture Trust.
New Zealand, I’m given to understand, has a salubrious climate, but maybe Quasi could be sent to more tropical climes. You know – among the palm trees.
I’ll show myself out.
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