Rob Pruitt’s Andy Warhol Statue Receives Extended Stay

By Andrew Russeth 10/31 8:56am

“The Andy Monument.” (Courtesy Paul_S / Flickr)

Last Friday marked the 125th anniversary of the opening of the Statue of Liberty.

By a remarkable coincidence, the Public Art Fund announced this past weekend that artist Rob Pruitt’s chrome statue of Andy Warhol, a symbol of hope and freedom in its own right, which had been scheduled to end its six-month residency at the northwest corner of Union Square park this month, will remain there until May 13, 2012. 

“The public has embraced Andy, and we’re delighted to extend his stay in Union Square,” Public Art Fund director and chief curator Nicholas Baume said in a statement included in the announcement, which noted the frequent presence of Campbell’s soup cans, flowers and various Warhol-related detritus around the base of the statue, The Andy Monument.

Mr. Pruitt noted in his own comments that the Pop artist served as something of a beacon for him. “I’ve really loved Andy Warhol since I was a kid, and I came to New York with the idea of pursuing a sort of Warholian life,” he said.

It would seem that Mr. Pruitt had a great week, having also appeared as a guest judge on Bravo’s Work of Art on Wednesday. Let’s end with the closing line from the review that WoA cast member and New York magazine critic Jerry Saltz published on the Warhol sculpture back in March, a suggestion that we wholeheartedly endorse: “It should be left here forever.”

– Pruitt’s “Andy” Gets An Extended 15 Minutes: Rob Pruitt’s “The Andy Monument,” a chromed statue of Andy Warhol installed last spring in Union Square, will have its stay extended through May 13, 2012. The sculpture, located just outside the building that housed the artist’s “Factory” for more than 10 years, has become “something of a pilgrimage site,” according to Public Art Fund director Nicholas Baume.  

Rob Pruitt’s Warhol Statue’s 15 Minutes of Fame Extended Until Spring

Posted by Benjamin Sutton on Mon, Oct 31, 2011 at 10:38 AM

Back in March when Rob Pruitt’s chromed Warhol statue “The Andy Monument” was unveiled outside the building that housed The Factory between 1967 and 1973 at the corner of 17th Street and Broadway, it was scheduled to be taken down on October 2nd, and we we were all like, “one hopes it might find a permanent home somewhere in Union Square, or near one of the Factory’s many other locations, rather than, like, a collector’s backyard.” And, low and behold, not only has the statue not yet been removed, but on Saturday the Public Art Fund—which commissioned it—announced that it will remain in place at least through May 13, 2012.

In a statement announcing the monument’s extended lease, Public Art Fund director and chief curator said: “Rob always had a feeling that this sculpture might become something of a pilgrimage site, and that’s precisely what’s happened. The public has embraced Andy, and we’re delighted to extend his stay in Union Square.”

Also commenting on the statue’s function as a pilgrimage site, Pruitt said: “When I see soup cans on the base or people standing in front of the monument to have their pictures taken, it reminds me of all the others who share this love of Andy and the life that he lived. The monument is almost more than art—it fills a void in the urban landscape to a man who so embodied the spirit of the city.”

For an example of said soup cans on the statue’s base, see below. For news of Pruitt’s monument’s fate come spring, stay tuned.

officesublets:

The Andy Monument is a temporary public art installation created by Rob Pruitt. It’s located at the NW corner of Union Square between the Starbucks and Petco - you can’t miss it. This is said to be the location that Andy once stood to sign copies of Interview Magazine. The shiny chrome…

(Source: officesublets)