[Image by flickr user Mandrill in Grey]
The future of the Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen sculpture designed for Gehry's Disney Hall "Collar and Bow" is looking mighty uncertain. After spending $4 million to commission the piece, it turns out that the design's "structural integrity and viability" is as safe as asking Britney Spears to babysit your kid. Lindsay Lohan to watch your stash. Bai Ling to design your wedding dress. In other words, not very. Oops. So what will it cost to actually get the 65-foot-tall metal and fiberglass sculpture constructed? A price tag of another $3 million, which Disney Hall has unsurprisingly balked at.
So what's a poor cultural non-profit backed by a major multinational corporation and LA's richest philanthropists supposed to do? Ask said philanthropists to pony up the cash? Well, yes - they're looking to "tap outside resources." Of course, for some, the technical difficulties are a blessing in disguise, since initial reaction to the sculpture was less than favorable. Does Disney Hall really need a 65-foot sculpture competing with the building?
· 'Collar and Bow' comes untied [Calendarlive]