Posted on 01/23/2014 5:05:08 AM PST by Uncle Chip
who created Nelson Mandela memorial included a RABBIT inside his ear
A 30ft sculpture of Nelson Mandela has angered South African officials as the sculptors left a ‘signature’ on the artwork – a sculpted rabbit tucked inside one of the bronze ears.
The bronze memorial, which was unveiled outside the government complex in Pretoria, after Mandela’s funeral on December 16, is billed as the largest statue of the South African leader in the world.
Officials demand that the miniature rabbit is to be removed from the statue, claiming it mocks Mandela and his life’s work.
The department of arts and culture said it didn't know the two sculptors, Andre Prinsloo and Ruhan Janse van Vuuren, had added a rabbit, said to be a discreet signature on their work.
The bronze rabbit, sitting on its haunches with one floppy ear, is about half the height of the ear canal. ‘It doesn't belong there,’ said Mogomotsi Mogodiri, a department spokesman. ‘The statue represents what everyone in South Africa is proud of.’
His department said in a statement that there are discussions on ‘how best to retain the integrity of the sculpture without causing any damage or disfigurement.’ The giant work stands with arms outstretched, symbolizing Mandela's devotion to inclusiveness, outside the Union Buildings, where the his body rests.
Earlier this week, South Africa's Beeld newspaper quoted the artists as saying they added the rabbit as a ‘trademark’ after officials would not allow them to engrave their signatures on the statue's trousers.
They also said the rabbit represented the pressure of finishing the sculpture on time because ‘haas’ - the word for rabbit in the Dutch-based Afrikaans language - also means ‘haste.’....
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
So that’s what the hare in my ear looks like — no wonder it’s so evasive and I have such a hard time getting it out of there.
Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids. I think the outrage is unjustified: nothing mocks Mandela’s life more than Mandela’s life. Good riddance to bad communists.
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