Evidently, there’s a grass roots effort to do something about the hideous Demon Horse of Denver.
Rachel Hultin wants to see the huge blue statue with its red glaring eyes removed from its current location. She has created a Facebook page called “DIA’s Heinous Blue Mustang Has Got To Go.”
On her Facebook page, Hultin writes, “Is anyone else as mortified and offended by DIA’s 32 foot fiendish blue ‘Mustang’ statue as I am? Does anyone else find it to be the least welcoming public art exhibit imaginable? Are you perturbed by the chilling fact that Luis Jimenez, its creator, was killed by a piece of its torso?”
The group’s membership swelled to more than 1,800 members by 3 p.m. Thursday.
The site is hosting a “Heinous Blue Mustang Haiku Challenge,” with the poems being sent to the mayor’s office to encourage him to move the statue.
She said she is a realist and doesn’t expect the city to move it, but believes it’s hideous. She said the mustang’s glowing red eyes are simply creepy, and thinks the Convention Center’s big blue bear was a better choice of art for the city.
“It’s just a very uninviting piece. I would just like to think that the people, when they come to our city, the first piece of art that they see should be a little more welcoming,” Hultin said.
As Margie points out, if it’s meant to greet visitors, it’s facing the wrong way — it faces inbound traffic to the airport, with new arrivals getting a view instead of Demon Horse Butt.
Now, having said all that, and heartily supporting the proposal that the horse be moved (or scrapped), I’m also a bit disturbed that folks object to it not because of its aesthetics, but because it’s, um, creepifying.
LaceyH “Seriously, that sculpture is scary and rather ominous … Particularly due to its past.”
Greeblemonkey “I hate to say it, but I am creeped out by the DIA mustang too. I know the family wanted it up — but seriously? It’s evil!”
Guys, really — it’s not evil. It’s not demon-possessed or haunted. It’s just … ugly.
(via Mom)
Slap some orange paint on the mane and people will like it just fine.
Dude, who would NOT want a haunted demon horse in their city?
Actually, sure, a haunted blue demon horse is fine. I just don’t want to have to look at it whenever I go to the airport, nor have it (or it’s hindquarters) be what greets people to our fair city.
I reiterate that it looks like a fairly good representation of elemental forces in an iconic animal form.
It’s definitely disturbing, but ugly? I, for one, don’t agree.
So there, nyah!
I don’t think it is proportionally correct, but it’s just close enough to not be a good abstract. IMO.
Maybe people would like it better if it was trampling a Raider?
How about mouting it by the Stadium?
I think that would be just fine.
We need to plumb the demon donkey with gas, and have him breath fire every five minutes.
Move it to the stadium, hook it up to the plumbing and have it use methane to snort flames . . .more eco-friendly that way!
i do think it is creepy looking and maybe its placement is a poor idea but i think if you placed it by invesco field people would love it!! it would potray dominance to visiting teams. Rather than puttin off an image of ugliness to tourists who come to colorado to see beauty
Agreed.
omg this horse is HUGE!!! and yes very disturbing. i wouldnt want to see that b4 getting on a plane. lol.what were those ppl thinking? idk.
FWIW…
My thoughts are any and all art that pisses off Dan Caplis and sends him to mouth foaming conniptions is good and needs to stay right where it is. 🙂
The New York Times has an article on what they call “Blue Mustang” on their web page today.
I think it would be far scarier having a 32 foot sculpture of an angel in white with hands clasped as in prayer. Now THAT would put the heebie Jeebies into anyone taking off or landing at the airport!
This piece of art is going to be bigger than it was meant to be. You know why! People are making it a bigger thing than it really is. If they ignored it, attention would not be drawn to it. I live in NYC, I knew nothing of it until all the blogs and protests!
All that is necessary for the triumph of bad art is for people of good taste to blog nothing. 🙂