A statue erected in Fort Myers, Florida depicting a man and his dog urinating on a lamp post is receiving mixed feelings from the community.
The metal sculpture was revealed as part of a public art series, and shows a man hunched over with a beer in one hand, while the other is pre-occupied. Beside him stands a dog with one leg raised in the air.
“I’m totally amused. I think it’s neat,” said Jon Dorsey, one resident who sees the work’s humour.
“It’s a conversation piece,” said Don Sankey, who noticed the piece while walking through the city’s River District.
Others like Jerry Jasperson, who was visiting Fort Myers with his wife, isn’t sure what to make of the statue.
“I noticed the dog, didn’t realize the man was also uh…having a good time,” said Jasperson.
“Kinda weird ain’t it?” said resident Bob Biser. “I don’t think children should be seeing that, do you? If I was doing that, I’d be in jail right now!”
Some residents found the work so distasteful, they went as far to use a tarp to cover up the statue’s private parts.
The piece was conceived by Colombian artist Edgardo Carmona, and attempts to depict the parallels between man and dog as they “mark” their territory.
The work was part of a 23-piece collection unveiled on Thursday called Allure Your Senses.
The two to three metre tall statues represent people who are not usually the subjects of fine art, including a woman caught in a rainstorm, men playing chess, a fruit seller, and two drunks on a park bench.
They represent “the commonality of real people,” Carmona said.
The sculptures were invited by Fort Myers’ Public Art Committee to promote a new high-rise development named Allure.
“In our wildest dreams, we couldn’t have anticipated something like this,” Mayor Randy Henderson told residents and art critics during the official unveiling.
“This is a world-class event. From the Eiffel Tower to the beautiful streets of Fort Myers,” said Henderson.
The collection is on an 18-city tour, and will only be in Fort Myers until the end of March, when they will be transported to Spain.
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