Art

NOW SHOWING: Erwin Wurm's Big Kastenmann Debuts at The Standard

Erwin Wurm's "Big Kastenmann" (2012) on view at The Standard through November 2012. Kindly Do-the-Wurm and Instagram to #wurm to be part of our Big Kastenmann Gallery.

Say hello to Big Kastenmann (Big Box Man), The Standard's new 18-foot, 1.6 ton sculpture by acclaimed Austrian artist Erwin Wurm. A single form of aluminum and pink enamel forged in the hills of southern Germany, Big Kastenmann (a specially commissioned follow-up to Wurm's 2010 "Kastenmann"), was installed last weekend via giant crane onto a concrete base in the corner of the plaza. Watch this impressive feat below in our video.

Watch the 1.6 tons of art that is "Big Kastenmann" get lowered into place.

Big, boxy, and, well, headless, he's got a dash of surrealist style and an irreverent sense of humor. In short, he's totally Standard. "My work is very much about interaction, and The Standard’s location and the size of the work ensure that 'Big Kastenmann' will be accessible to many people, which is the essence of public art," said Wurm, highlighting the central motivation of The Standard's ongoing public art program. (Perhaps you remember KAWS' "Companion Passing Through" from last year, which is going to become a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Balloon?)

Erwin Wurm's Pee on Someone's Rug from "Instructions on How to Be Politically Incorrect" Series. (P.S. We do not endorse unauthorized peeing on anyone's rug, especially our own.)

In conjunction with the "Big Kastenmann" commission, The Standard has released a limited edition prints, (100 + 10 AP) Pee on Someone’s Rug, 2003, from Erwin Wurm’s series "Instructions on how to be politically incorrect." These are available for $2,000 through The Standard, New York’s Shop or online at ShopTheStandard.com.. Big Kastermann is on sale too, although for slightly more than $2,000. Please contact Lehmann Maupin Gallery if interested.

RELATED: The Standard Plaza's Summer Café and all things Standard and KAWS

Images courtesy of the Artist and Lehmann Maupin Gallery, New York. Photography by Adrian Gaut.

Related Stories

Book Now