Monument with Standing Beast
| Monument With Standing Beast | |
|---|---|
.JPG?lang=en) | |
| Artist | Jean Dubuffet |
| Year | 1984 |
| Type | Fiberglass |
| Dimensions | 8.8 m (29 ft) |
| Location | James R. Thompson Center (outdoor), Chicago |
Monument with Standing Beast is a sculpture by Jean Dubuffet previously located in front of the James R. Thompson Center in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. It was across the street from Chicago City Hall to the South and diagonal across the street from the Daley Center to the southeast. Weighing 10 short tons (8.9 long tons; 9.1 t),[1][2] the structure was made of fiberglass and was 29 feet (8.8 m) tall.[1][3] It was unveiled on November 28, 1984.[2] The state government announced plans to relocate the sculpture after Alphabet Inc. acquired the building in 2022,[4] It was dismantled in the spring of 2024 and was bound for a state warehouse.[5]
This is one of Dubuffet's three monumental sculpture commissions in the United States. It has been taken to represent a standing animal, a tree, a portal and an architectural form.[3] The sculpture is based on Dubuffet's 1960 painting series Hourloupe.[6] The sculpture and the series of figural and landscape designs it is a part of reflects his thoughts of earliest monumental commission, for the One Chase Manhattan Plaza.[6]
The sculpture is one of 19 commissioned artworks funded under the State of Illinois Art-in-Architecture Program throughout the building.[6] This was commissioned by the Capital Development Board of Illinois.[6]
The sculpture is affectionately known to many Chicagoans as "Snoopy in a blender".[6][7]
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ a b "Monument with Standing Beast by Jean Dubuffet". WTTW Chicago. October 24, 2011. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ a b "Dubuffet: Monument with Standing Beast". Chicago Public Library. August 1996. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved June 6, 2007.
- ^ a b "Artropolis". Merchandise Mart Properties, Inc. 2007. Archived from the original on March 15, 2008. Retrieved May 30, 2007.
- ^ Sutton, Benjamin (August 1, 2022). "Chicago's Ten-Ton Jean Dubuffet Sculpture Will Be Relocated After Google Buys Building Where It Has Long Stood". The Art Newspaper - International art news and events. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ "Thompson Center artwork — Where did it all go?". Chicago Sun-Times. May 15, 2024. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "Monument with Standing Beast". Archived from the original on April 27, 2006. Retrieved June 6, 2007.
- ^ "Hey, homies, did you know . . . ?". Chicago Tribune. June 21, 2002. Archived from the original on June 1, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
External links
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