Magdalena Abakanowicz, Puellae (Girls), 1992
A few weeks ago while I was hanging out there, drinking some coffee, and sketching elliot the pirate, a mother and two kids walked by. Age guess of kids: maybe 4 and 6?
Mom looks at the scuplture, cringes and says: "Ooh...not so nice."
The elder of the two boys says: "Look ma, no heads...what happened?"
Mom says: “Maybe it means they weren’t using their heads...”
and the kid says: “I know what happened. They stopped thinking and didn’t need their heads any more so they just blew off!”
You can read about the real story of this scuplture on the NGA's Sculpture Garden web site by clicking here.
3 comments:
Ha! Ha! That sounds like a story a zen master would tell his students about the devious machinations of the mind.
I love eavesdropping in public places. listening to the things people say when they're reacting honestly to art. I'm not talking about the pretentious Woody Allen movie bullshit talkers, showing off to whomever they're with. I mean the real reactions, like this exchange.
What do you think of this sculpture? It creeps me out.
I really like overhearing conversations where someone is obviously telling someone else something totally off. And I totally love it when that someone else is a kid and their reasoning and reactions are way more level headed than their parents. It just makes me smile. sometimes.
At the 2004 chinese buddhist statue exhibit at the Sackler Gallery, I overhead a man telling his little girl something totally wrong...but I just can't remember the question! Apple-green ink, you were with me and heard it too...do you remember?
reya, I like the repetition of this sculpture, and the shadows it makes. But yeah, what it represents for the artist is pretty creepy.
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