A giant fox sculpture that escaped demolition two years ago has made a comeback in Jing’an, thanks to birds breeding.

“Urban Fox,” the star attraction of the last biennale sculpture exhibition, has returned to Jing’an Sculpture Park with “new lively contents” after a two-month repair.

The metal-and-straw creation, seven meters high and eight meters wide, was scheduled to be pulled down two years ago, but it was allowed to remain because birds were using the sculpture as a nesting site.

There were about 100 nests in the fox this summer, when Manchester-based sculptor Alex Rinsler returned to Shanghai to repair his sun-scorched, rain-drenched creation.

In a workshop in the Fengxian District, Rinsler and his team tore apart the sculpture, cleaned it and then reassembled it in a slightly different way. Little wooden birdhouses were built into its body to hold nests removed from his belly, and cameras were installed to record the bird life.

The original “Urban Fox” wore a somewhat melancholy expression, but the recycled version has eyes that sparkle. The new sculpture is part of a small micro-ecosystem that brims with life.

“I expect to see the birds return, hatch their eggs here and raise their fledglings,” Rinsler said.

Mao Wencai from Purple Roof Gallery said the renovated sculpture echoes the theme of this year’s exhibition — “rebirth of the city.”

The new “Urban Fox” was unveiled to the public on September 20, when the two-month Jing’an International Sculpture Project began.

A documentary on the birds will be screened in the sculpture park of the Shanghai Natural History Museum, Mao said.

Other highlights

Besides Rinsler’s fox, about 300 pieces by 24 artists from seven countries will be on display in the sculpture park, Daning Park and the Ming Contemporary Art Museum.

Steve Tobin is one of the big names in this year’s exhibition.

He came from the United States with 48 pieces, which he said took 10 people more than three months to pack in sea containers.

Tobin is probably best known for his unusual, sprawling root sculptures, which are cast in bronze and then given a wood-like patina. He calls his creation series “Steelroot.”

“Usually, I don’t give my work specific a name because everybody has a relationship with roots,” Tobin said. “If I use an exact title, many people may not relate to it.”

He said all the “roots” sprang from the Chinese character
(人), or “people.” They are the roots of the world, he explained, and “we are all growing.”

His objective is to redirect the public’s attention back to nature, Tobin said. Sunshine and shadows give his work the look of natural stumps that can change with the environment.

“Art is like nature,” he said, “and it comes alive with the viewer.”

Tobin isn’t the only nature advocate in this year’s exhibition.

Cui Yi collected construction waste and created nine pieces in a collection called “Life.” He explained that his work gives a “second birth” to waste and sends a warning about unchecked, barbaric urban growth.

David Hinder, from Canada, is also a magician of construction waste.

He brought “Meg’s Pause” to the park. It’s a big piece, six meters high, holding a round object and implying that human beings should love the earth and protect it.

Chinese artist Wang Luyan, a master of metaphor, focuses on social problems.

His creation, “The Walkers,” sends the initial message of moving forward bravely, but upon closer examination, viewers find themselves in a paradox. The statue of six human figures looks the same from the front and back and mirrors multiply the number of images.

US sculptor Don Gummer, husband of actress Meryl Streep, creates works that focus on harmony with the natural environment and the unnatural nature of cities. His four pieces resemble twisted apartments.

Huang Longfei is displaying the statue of a woman dancing alone.

“We all dance to our own rhythm, alone and lonely in today’s life,” Huang said.

Hong Kong architect Gary Chang focuses on solutions as well as problems.

How to live in cramped urban space?

He built two red glasshouses, each 10 square meters. The “Cage House” holds eight “cages,” or beds. It demonstrates extreme forms of habitation in a compact space, which is akin to the reality of Hong Kong, where some of the city’s poor and homeless live in nothing more than dormitory “cages.”

In the “Ultimate House,” he places a cabinet and a platform, both with various functions. It provides an abstract interpretation for the ultimate composition of compact living. He wants to encourage better, more creative home designs that make the most of limited resources.

As Mao said: “We have made some crossover attempts to echo the theme of urban renovation.”

Public art

In the past, sculptures were typically memorials, and many were copies of famous statues.

“We have had so many years to change our stereotyped idea of sculpture as only statues or memorials,” Mao said.

“Today, we recognize sculpture as part of urban art and encourage people to interact with it,” she added.

According to sculptor Tobin, public art gives identity to a community, just like a grand building.

“My challenge is to invite everybody, even those with no art education,” he said. “I want even an eight-year-old boy to understand and appreciate every piece I make. If a piece invites people in, then they will feel it’s their piece.”

Like his “Steelroots” series, the works are large but not massive. People can see through them, walk inside and touch.

“They are inside art, and art become alive inside people,” he said.

Huang Caidi, deputy director of Jing’an greenery authority, said she thinks public artists should pay heed to social changes.

“Today, public art is not just kind of art with aesthetic values,” she said. “It should advance our urban development.”

District Deputy Director Yao Kai agreed.

“We want sculpture to be part of our urban renovation,” he said. “We don’t expect every piece to be as famous as Manneken Pis in Brussels, but I think sculpture should be integrated with the local environment and beloved by residents. Like the Urban Fox. People love it, so we keep it.”

One only has to look at Joy Brown’s lovely bronze and clay human figures that dominate the square of Jing’an Kerry Centre. They exude the pride of the community. Another prominent work in the district is the statue of running horses that stands in front of the Shanghai Exhibition Center. It was created by French artist and sculptor Arman and unveiled in Shanghai in May 2004. It has long been described as China’s first world-class modern sculpture.

“Though many of our existing sculptures may be just meaningless and extravagant copycats,” Mao said, “there is no need to remove them at once. It’s better to allow them to remain until we have clear plan about which are right to be placed where.”