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Demonic Horse Statue At Denver International Airport.
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WoW, the story of this this is quite interesting. Theres this big 32 ft. high statue of a blue mustang with bright red glowing eyes in place to greet everyone into the airport. There was a lot of delays to get the thing in place and the thing has actually murdered its creater. Heres the story, click linky for pics :
Workers on cranes stripped plastic wrap and duct tape from a 32-foot-high mustang sculpture today, revealing a bright blue face and fire engine red eyes.
The mustang greets drivers as they approach Denver International Airport and is the first startling thing visitors see as they depart the airport to the Mile High City.
"As I was leaving last night, I couldn't stop the tears, it was so beautiful," said Rudi Cerri, public art administrator for the city of Denver.
That was when the mustang looked more like a zebra, striped with tape.
"The lights were shining on it and it conveyed such a sense of power," Cerri said.
The horse is rearing on its hind legs, its four legs cocked, its eyes facing Pikes Peak.
Said Matt Chasanski, also a public art administrator: "It just speaks to power and movement and energy, like so much of the artist's work. A lot of Luis' work was about movement through time and space."
The mustang's creator, Luis Jimenez, was killed in 2006 when the torso portion of the sculpture swung out of control and fell on him while it was being hoisted in his New Mexico studio.
Chasanski said the development of the West hinged on the horse. "This shows its impact, powerful and dominant."
Cerri added, "It's a bold piece for a bold landscape."
--Bill Scanlon
Story from today's Rocky
Sixteen years, four missed deadlines, two lawsuits and one death later, the long-awaited sculpture Mustang finally has been lassoed.
The 32-foot-tall rearing blue fiberglass horse with fiery red eyes left California on a flatbed trailer late last week and arrived at its new home at Denver International Airport on Sunday.
The sculpture, designed by the late artist Luis Jimenez, was installed Monday on a dirt mound between the inbound and outbound lanes of Pena Boulevard, before the inbound road branches off to the east and west terminals.
"Luis loved the spot because he thought of the purple mountains' majesty, the idea of this rearing horse looking at this incredible landscape," Kendall Peterson, public art administrator for the Denver Office of Cultural Affairs, said Jimenez's ex-wife told her.
Jeff Green, an airport spokesman, said Mustang is sitting on a concrete base and bolted to steel. You can't miss it if you travel to DIA, and it will be lit at night.
"When you're right underneath it, it's extraordinarily big and a spectacular silhouette," Peterson said.
The artwork was commissioned by the city of Denver in 1992 for delivery in 1996. But it was hobbled by a series of delays, from legal battles between the city and Jimenez to unmet deadlines by the artist.
One of the most recent setbacks was the death of Jimenez, who was killed in June 2006 when the torso section of the horse swung out of control and fell on him while it was being hoisted in his New Mexico studio.
After Jimenez's death, the artwork got caught in probate for months, but eventually was transported to California for engineering upgrades and repairs to its fiberglass skin.
The sculpture was trucked to Denver in taped protective wrapping, giving it a zebra look. Removal of the wrapping was postponed until this morning because of inclement weather Monday night, Green said.
Sculptor William Goodman, a longtime friend of Jimenez, who was known for larger-than-life sculptures that incorporated Chicano and Mesoamerican imagery, said the artist would be pleased that Mustang has been finished.
"I don't think anyone should feel disappointed that it wasn't actually finished by him," Goodman said in a telephone interview from his home in Tinnie, N.M.
"It was definitely his project from beginning to end," he said.
--Daniel J. Chacon
Sculpture's journey
Luis Jimenez, an award-winning artist, was commissioned to create a 32-foot horse sculpture, called Mustang, for display at Denver International Airport. The artist lost his life and the city's cost more than doubled on the road to the sculpture's installation.
1992: City of Denver commissions the sculpture for $300,000 with a 1996 delivery date.
2001: The city changed the planned location of Mustang to inside the terminal, from a site on Pena Boulevard.
2003: After several delays, the city sued Jimenez to get its $165,000 advance payment back. Jimenez, countersued because DIA wanted to place his sculpture inside.
2004: An agreement was reached calling for Jimenez to meet certain deadlines leading to installation of the piece and Mustang would be installed outside. Jimenez would receive the remaining $135,000 on his contract.
2005: Jimenez continued to miss deadlines.
2006: Jimenez was killed when part of the sculpture fell on him in his New Mexico studio.
2007: The city took possession of the sculpture in mid-October. The piece took a detour to California for repairs and safety upgrades. A budget of $350,000 was approved to rehab the sculpture, ship it, install it and dedicate it.
[link to www.rockymountainnews.com]
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