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Forever Marilyn

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Forever Marilyn
Forever Marilyn in front of the Palm Springs Art Museum in 2021
ArtistSeward Johnson
Year2011
TypePainted steel and aluminum
Dimensions7.9 m (26 ft)
LocationChicago, IL (2011–12)
Hamilton Township, NJ (2014–15)
Bendigo, Australia (2016)
Stamford, CT (2018)
Palm Springs, CA (2012–14, 2021–)
OwnerPS Resorts[1]

Forever Marilyn is a giant statue of Marilyn Monroe designed by Seward Johnson. The statue is a representation of the image of Monroe taken from Billy Wilder's 1955 film The Seven Year Itch. Created in 2011, the statue has been displayed in a variety of locations in the United States, as well as in Australia.

Description

The 26-foot-tall (7.9 m) 34,000-pound (15,000 kg) sculpture, manufactured of painted stainless steel and aluminium,[2] is a super-sized tribute to Marilyn Monroe's scene from Billy Wilder's 1955 infidelity comedy, The Seven-Year Itch, with the figure capturing the instant a blast of air from a NYC subway grate raises her white dress.[3]

Locations

The statue was displayed at Pioneer Court part of the Magnificent Mile section of Chicago, Illinois. In August and September 2011 the statue was vandalized three times, including being splashed with red paint. According to the executive director of the Chicago Public Arts Group, "In our society, we have little room for sexually expressive images ... The social contract doesn't work, because it is itself laden with political meaning, and provocative meaning and sexual meaning."[4]

It was moved in 2012 to the corner of Palm Canyon Drive and Tahquitz Canyon Way in Palm Springs, California.[5] It was given a farewell sendoff during the Palm Springs Village Fest on 27 March 2014,[6] and was then relocated to the 42-acre Grounds for Sculpture (GFS) (17 ha) in Hamilton, New Jersey as part of a 2014 retrospective honoring Seward Johnson.[2][7] Due to its popularity, the statue remained on display at the GFS until September 2015, after the official end of the retrospective.[8]

The statue was displayed in 2016 in Rosalind Park in the Australian city of Bendigo in connection with the Bendigo Art Gallery's Marilyn Monroe exhibition.[9]

In 2018, the statue was displayed at Latham Park in Stamford, Connecticut, as part of a large public art exhibition honoring the works of Seward Johnson. Thirty-six sculptures were placed throughout streets and parks in Downtown Stamford, with Forever Marilyn being the highlight of the exhibit.[10] The statue sparked controversy when it was placed in Stamford with complaints arising due to her appearing to flash her underwear at the nearby First Congregational Church.[11][12][13]

In September 2019, Palm Springs mayor Robert Moon announced the statue's return to Palm Springs as a permanent fixture after being stored in a dismantled state in New Jersey.[14] On 3 February 2021, it was announced that the statue would be erected on Museum Way just east of the Palm Springs Art Museum with an unveiling date of 18 April 2021. According to the announcement, Forever Marilyn is set to remain in Palm Springs for up to three years: in two years time the statue's local economic impact is scheduled to be reviewed and its future decided.[15][16] Litigation seeking to block the erection of Forever Marilyn was filled in the California courts.[17] The statue was unveiled on 20 June 2021,[18] with the Riverside County Superior Court dismissing four of the Committee to Relocate Marilyn's purported causes of action on 18 July 2021, with the committee's remaining two purported causes being dismissed by the Riverside County Superior Court on 9 September 2021.[19]

In 2021, the statue was debated on the TV programme Good Morning Britain. The statue was defended from accusations of misogyny by Monroe impersonator Suzie Kennedy.[20]

The city council voted in December 2023 to amend the Palm Springs Specific Plan to keep the statue in its current location permanently. A small portion of Museum Way would be vacated to create a parcel for the statue.[21]

Replica

The 26.8-foot-tall (8.18 m) stainless steel statue was taller than the original. It had been put on display at a Chinese business center in 2013 to highlight the business's international relations.[22] In June 2014, the eight ton statue was photographed in a local Guigang, China garbage dump.[23] This statue is featured twice in the 2017 Chinese drama film, Angels Wear White. It is shown both at the start of the film on full display and as part of the films poignant commentary, at the end of the film, in the process of being discarded in pieces and hauled away.[24]

See also

References

  1. ^ Cassady, Daniel (February 28, 2023). "26-Foot Marilyn Monroe Statue Still Causing a Stir Among the Palm Springs Elite". ARTnews. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "The Retrospective Site Map (See: Icons Revisited Series)" (PDF). Groundsforsculpture.org. Grounds for Sculpture. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 8, 2017. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  3. ^ "The Seven Year Itch (Trivia)". IMDB.com. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  4. ^ Reese, Ronnie. Vandals splash Monroe statue with red paint. Chicago Tribune. September 28, 2011. Accessed October 2, 2011.
  5. ^ "Forever Marilyn: Palm Springs sets goodbye party". The Desert Sun. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  6. ^ "Business News: Forever Marilyn to Stay in Palm Springs until Mid-November". The Public Record. 37 (32): 3. July 30, 2013. ISSN 0744-205X. OCLC 8101482.
  7. ^ "Seward Johnson: The Retrospective". Archived from the original on October 5, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. ^ "Goodbye Norma Jean: Forever Marilyn sculpture comes down". NJ.com. September 29, 2015. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  9. ^ "American crew assemble Marilyn sculpture that gallery director Karen Quinlan says will be a conversation-starter", Bendigo Advertiser, February 2, 2016.
  10. ^ "Timeless – The Works of Seward Johnson". stamford-downtown.com. Stamford Downtown – This is the place!. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  11. ^ Kuruvilla, Carol (June 11, 2018). "Church Is Taking Appearance Of Gigantic Marilyn Monroe Statue In Stride". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  12. ^ Cromley, Janet (June 9, 2018). "Marilyn Monroe Statue Outside Church Gets Tongues Wagging". Newser. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  13. ^ "The day in pictures : 15 photographs that made today's news". HeraldScotland.com. June 8, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  14. ^ "'Forever Marilyn' statue to return to Palm Springs".
  15. ^ "'Forever Marilyn' Sculpture Nears Return to Downtown Palm Springs". February 4, 2021.
  16. ^ "'Forever Marilyn' unveiling pushed back to April 18".
  17. ^ Rode, Erin (June 1, 2021). "Court denies latest effort to block Forever Marilyn installation". Desert Sun. USA Today Network.
  18. ^ Marilyn Monroe statue returns to Palm Springs, to cheers and jeers, Free Malaysia Today, June 25, 2021
  19. ^ "Palm Springs' 'Forever Marilyn' statue case dismissed by court, opponents plan appeal".
  20. ^ Griffin, Louise (May 26, 2021). "Marilyn Monroe impersonator hits back at claims statue 'encourages upskirting'". Metro. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  21. ^ Jadulang, Tiani (December 5, 2023). "Palm Springs Amends City Plan For 'Forever Marilyn' Statue". NBC Palm Springs. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  22. ^ "China's tallest Marilyn Monroe statue dumped". chinadaily.com. June 21, 2014. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  23. ^ "A 26-Foot Marilyn Monroe Sculpture Meets Its End in a Chinese Dump". nbcnews.com. June 19, 2014. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  24. ^ Ng, Natalie (June 13, 2018). "Review: Angels Wear White". Filmed in Ether. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
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