December 3, 2008
Colossus Redux
[The Colossus of Rhodes by Salvador Dali]
What is it about giant anthropomorphic statues that so captures our imagination? Is it the astonishing craftsmanship? The audacious use of material? Or perhaps it’s the primal thrill of seeing our bodies represented at the scale of a god? Whatever the reason, no statue in history has captivated our wonderment more than the Colossus of Rhodes, distinguished with the recognition as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Colossus of Rhodes continues to intrigue despite —or perhaps because of—a convoluted history full of speculation and conflicting physical descriptions that’s often more myth than fact. Nonetheless, the mind reels at the thought of its possible reconstruction: historic sacrilege or inspired recreation? The best answer is, of course, somewhere between.
Or so thinks East German artist Gert Hof, who is planning to build a new Colossus in the spirit of the original. Like Chares of Lindos’ original sculpture, it will be built from melted weapons and will stand guard in front of the town’s harbor, visible to all passing ships. But because this is the modern age—and dammit, we have the technology!—the new Colossus will be a bit more…um, colossal and a bit less traditional. Project head Dimitris Koutaoulas is describing Hof’s proposal to rebuild the wonder as a “highly highly innovative light sculpture….the world’s largest light installation.” Quick, someone tell Eliasson that the gauntlet has been dropped!
· Colossus of Rhodes to be rebuilt as giant light sculpture [Guardian]
· The Next Big Thing [Life Without Buildings]
· More Giant Statues [Life Without Buildings]
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Comments
One Response to “Colossus Redux”
One Response to “Colossus Redux”
This is very funny (Quick, someone tell Eliasson that the gauntlet has been dropped!)