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Nataraja-Shiva-2004-bronze-2-meters-installation-view-CERN-Meyrin-Switzerland feat

Why is there a statue of Shiva the Destroyer at CERN? Your questions answered

Sculptures, Statues / 9 minutes of reading

If you have been keeping up with the happenings of the CERN, the world’s most advanced scientific research facility, you might have noticed the statue of Shiva the Destroyer. Shiva, the cosmic dancer, symbolizes the natural flow of divine energy. He takes part in Rudra Tandava – a dance representing destruction and rebirth- to reshape […]

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George W. Bush statue, 2011, bronze, 2.58 m (9.3 ft.), 400 kg (880 lb) feat

George W. Bush’s statue & his stolen wristwatch

Statues / 4 minutes of reading

To understand the George W. Bush statue, you must first understand the longstanding relationship that has always existed between the US and Albania. Albanians have had a great admiration for former President Bush. In 2007, President Bush’s European tour was plagued by protests and debacles. Albania was one of the only countries to give the

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Florian-Yuriev-Tarilka-The-Flying-Saucer-Ukrainian-Institute-of-Scientific-Technical-and-Economic-Information-Kiev-Ukraine-feat

Kiev’s UFO – A modernist masterpiece

Architecture, Modernist Architecture / 7 minutes of reading

Deservedly nicknamed the “Kiev flying saucer” or “Kiev UFO,” the Kiev Institute of Information is an authentic work of modernist architecture that stole the limelight during the Soviet era. This awe-inspiring, alien-like piece of Soviet architecture has again come to the spotlight because it is being threatened by the mushrooming of modern shopping malls. Let’s

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Fumiko-Hori-Utopia-2014-45-x-55-meter-ceramic-relief-installation-view-International-Lobby-on-1st-Floor-of-Terminal-Building-Fukushima-Airport-Japan-feat

At age 95, Fumiko Hori created this mural for the Fukushima Airport

Ceramics, Murals / 4 minutes of reading

Fumiko Hori supervised the installation of the mural herself, quite an impressive feat for a woman aged 95 at the time. The giant relief wall was based on Hori’s original painting at the CREARE Atami-Yugawara Studio. The relief carving at the airport helps to create an illusion of depth on an otherwise shallow surface. The

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Mario Irarrázabal – Mano del Desierto (Hand of the Desert), 1992, concrete, iron frame, 11 metres (36 ft) tall, installation view, Atacama Desert, Chile feat

The Hand of the Desert – Chile’s massive sculpture

Sculptures / 7 minutes of reading

Mano del Desierto (aka the Hand of the Desert) is one Chile’s most talked-about art installations. It is a gigantic cement hand structure jutting 36 feet (around 11 meters) out of the arid sand of the Chilean Atacama Desert, one of the emptiest, most barren, and driest places on the face of the planet. The

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Olympic Flame mosaic at the end of the central hall in the metro station Olimpiiska, Kyiv, Ukraine feat

Olimpiiska – One of Kyiv’s most intriguing metro stations

Architecture, Installations, Mosaics / 4 minutes of reading

The Olimpiiska Station, located in Kyiv, Ukraine, stands in the same spot as the former Ploshchad Lev Tolstoy station and serves as a prime example for Soviet-era art. This period was marked by strict censorship and ideological control, with art expected to align with state interests and promote communist ideology. It is a part of

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African Renaissance Monument, 2010, bronze, 49 meter (161 feet), Ouakam suburb, Dakar, Senegal feat

The African Renaissance Monument – Africa’s most controversial statue

Sculptures, Statues / 12 minutes of reading

This 49 meters tall bronze statue is located on top of the Collines des Mamelles – one of the twin hills – in the Senegalese capital Dakar. It overlooks the Atlantic Ocean just outside the city in the Ouakam neighborhood. The African Renaissance Monument was designed by renowned Senegalese architect Pierre Goudiaby Atepa following a

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Studio Gang - Hive, 2017, 2,700 wound paper tubes, installation view, National Building Museum feat

Jeanne Gang’s massive Hive at the National Building Museum

Installations, Sound installations / 4 minutes of reading

“Hive” refers to an installation featured during the annual Summer Block Party series hosted by the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. It featured an excess of 2500 meshing paper tubes that formed a set of 3 intersected, domed acoustic chambers. Inside the acoustic chambers, visitors could interact with the drum-like tubes and chimes situated

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Agnes F. Northrop - Hartwell Memorial Window, 1917, leaded glass, 798.7 x 554.7 x 42.5 cm, installation view, The Art Institute of Chicago feat

The Hartwell Memorial Window by Agnes Northrop – Dazzling & Monumental

Stained Glass Windows / 6 minutes of reading

It has been over a century since Mary Hartwell commissioned Agnes F. Northrop to design the Hartwell memorial window to honor Frederick Hartwell, her husband. The artwork was given to the Community Church of Providence, Rhode Island. It was kept in the church sanctuary until 2018 when a unanimous decision by the congregation saw it

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Jennifer Rubell - Ivanka Vacuuming, 2019, performance, Flashpoint Gallery, Washington D.C. feat

Ivanka vacuuming & Why throwing her crumbs makes you feel powerful

Performances / 6 minutes of reading

Live art is not common, yet it is the only form of expression that would bring out a real-life perception. Ivanka Vacuuming is one of such artworks, created by an American artist Jennifer Rubell. In the live-streamed performance, a model look-alike of Ivanka Trump is recorded vacuuming crumbs from a carpet. The art piece, which

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Lin Yilin - Safely Maneuvering across Lin He Road, 1995, performance, Guangzhou, China feat

Lin Yilin’s performance – Safely Maneuvering Across Lin He Road

Performances, Video Art / 4 minutes of reading

Lin Yilin needs no introductions in the world of performance art. As one of the most well-known Chinese artists, Yilin has made a name for himself for his contemporary interventions and performance pieces that often criticize China’s extreme urbanization, modernization, commercial globalization, as well as its geopolitical conflicts. Lin was born in Guangzhou, China, and

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Xu-Zhen-–-In-Just-a-Blink-of-an-Eye-20052021-installation-view-K11-MUSEA-2021-image-courtesy-of-K11-Art-Foundation-feat

Xu Zhen’s In just a blink of an eye – Defying the laws of physics?

Performances, Sculptures / 5 minutes of reading

Have you ever seen one of those perfectly timed photos that capture the exact moment someone begins to fall on their bum? With modern technology, it is not hard to capture that “perfect moment”. However, capturing that “perfect moment” in a live performance is nearly impossible; unless you are Xu Zhen. Chinese artist Xu Zhen

Xu Zhen’s In just a blink of an eye – Defying the laws of physics? Read More

Ayşe Erkmen - On Water, 2017, ocean cargo containers, steel beams, steel grates, 6400 x 640 cm walkway, installation view, Skulptur Projekte Münster 2017, Münster, Germany feat

Ayşe Erkmen makes you walk on water

Installations / 3 minutes of reading

Erkmen’s On Water debuted at the 2017 international open-air exhibition, Sculpture Projects, in Münster, Germany. It became an instant hit with visitors who used her bridge to cross the canal. On Water was a temporary footbridge installation that was laid underwater in an abandoned basin on the Dortmund-Ems canal. Such was the scale of the

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Doris Salcedo’s Shibboleth – A giant crack in Tate Modern

Installations / 6 minutes of reading

Shibboleth was an installation piece designed and completed by celebrated Colombian artist Doris Salcedo at the Turbine Hall of the Tate Modern Museum in London. Before Salcedo created the installation itself, she created digital renderings on real photos of the Turbine Hall floor. The artist then printed the rendering before presenting them to the board

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Katsuhiro Otomo - Kinka Doji Riding the Waves Accompanied by Fujin and Raijin, 2015, ceramic relief, 8.7 x 2.8 meter, installation view, Sendai Airport, Japan feat

Katsuhiro Otomo’s mural at the Sendai Airport – Riding the Waves

Ceramics / 4 minutes of reading

Katsuhiro Otomo, the creator of Akira, the 1988 Japanese animated cyberpunk action film, is one of the most well-known manga artists, animators, screenwriters, and film directors in the world. Though he is best known for his manga series and film adaptations, Otomo crossed over into the sculpture world when he was asked to design a

Katsuhiro Otomo’s mural at the Sendai Airport – Riding the Waves Read More

Chen-Wenling-What-You-See-Might-Not-Be-Real-installation-view-Emergency-Exit-JoyArt-798-Beijing-China-2009-feat

Chen Wenling’s bull fart sculpture – What you see might not be real

Sculptures / 3 minutes of reading

The Bull Fart Sculpture was exhibited in a Beijing art gallery in 2009 by celebrated Chinese artist Chen Wenling. Chen titled the work What You See Might Not Be Real to take an in-depth look at the international financial crisis that the world was grappling with at the time. Chen created the farting bull to

Chen Wenling’s bull fart sculpture – What you see might not be real Read More

Banksy – Cardinal Sin, 2006, defaced stone bust, bathroom tiles, 180 x 40 x 40 cm feat

Banksy’s Cardinal Sin – An expose of rot within this institution

Sculptures, Street Art / 5 minutes of reading

This piece by Banksy is unlike anything he has done before. For the street artist, vandalizing an ancient statue and putting on it his personal touch drove the intended message home. Looking at the sculpture, it is clearly the bust of a catholic priest, complete with a cross pendant and mass vestments. However, it has

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Josep Maria Subirachs - Monument a Ramon Llull (Escala de l'Enteniment) (Monument to Ramon Llull (Stairway to Understanding)), 1976, concrete, 870 cm, outer area of the Montserrat Monastery, Catalonia, Spain feat

A stairway to heaven? Josep Maria Subirachs’ sculpture in Montserrat

Sculptures / 3 minutes of reading

Situated in Montserrat, Spain, the Stairway of Understanding is one of the most sacred spots in Spain, which explains why it is such a well-known pilgrimage destination among the locals. Millions of tourists visit Montserrat every year to lay eyes on some of the most beautiful monuments in the region. The Stairway to Understanding is

A stairway to heaven? Josep Maria Subirachs’ sculpture in Montserrat Read More

Alberto Burri - Cretto di Burri (crack of Burri), 1984–2015, concrete, 1.50 x 350 x 280 m (4.9 x 1,150 x 920 ft), Gibellina, Sicily, Italy feat

The magnificent Cretto di Burri – 30 years in the making

Sculptures / 10 minutes of reading

Also known as Cretto di Gibellina (crack of Gibellina) or The Great Cretto, the Cretto di Burri alias crack of Burri is a landscape artwork by Italian visual artist, painter, sculptor, and physician Alberto Burri. He started to work on it in 1984 and left it unfinished in 1989 because of a lack of funds.

The magnificent Cretto di Burri – 30 years in the making Read More

Wesley Meuris – Memento, 2012, 500 x 1000 x 1000 cm, installation view, Central Burial of Borgloon, Belgium feat

Wesley Meuris’ Memento – A place to leave your worries behind

Architecture, Sculptures / 3 minutes of reading

Memento is a circular pavilion that was created by Belgian artist Wesley Meuris. This beautiful white pavilion is located on the outskirts of the little Flemish town of Borgloon. Being situated directly on the slope, Memento overlooks the central graveyard found in the medieval city that has been nicknamed Central Burial by the locals. Memento

Wesley Meuris’ Memento – A place to leave your worries behind Read More

Vincent Ganivet’s monumental Catena Containers in Le Havre

Sculptures / 3 minutes of reading

The Catène de Containers is a sculpture created by Vincent Ganivet in 2017. To build the monument, Ganivet made two archways of containers to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the French city Le Havre. The containers, which were stacked up to 30-meters high, are easily distinguished by the various bright colors and are situated at

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