Quirk on Mandela statue causes stir
Print Edition
A new, 9-meter sculpture of Nelson Mandela is billed as the biggest statue of the South African leader. It also has a tiny, barely visible quirk: a sculpted rabbit tucked inside one of the bronze ears.
South African officials want the miniature bunny removed from the statue, which was unveiled outside the government complex in Pretoria on December 16, a day after Mandela’s funeral. The department of arts and culture said it didn’t know the two sculptors, Andre Prinsloo and Ruhan Janse van Vuuren, had added a rabbit, said to be a discreet signature on their work.
The bronze rabbit, sitting on its haunches with one floppy ear, is about half the height of the ear canal.
“It doesn’t belong there,” said Mogomotsi Mogodiri, a department spokesman. “The statue represents what everyone in South Africa is proud of.”
The department said there are discussions on “how best to retain the integrity of the sculpture without causing any damage or disfigurement.”
The giant work stands with arms outstretched, symbolizing Mandela’s devotion to inclusiveness, outside the Union Buildings, where the body of the prisoner who opposed white rule and became South Africa’s first black president lay in state after his death at the age of 95.
Earlier this week, South Africa’s Beeld newspaper quoted the artists as saying they added the rabbit as a “trademark” after officials would not allow them to engrave their signatures on the statue’s trousers. They also said the rabbit represented the pressure of finishing the sculpture on time because “haas” — the word for rabbit in the Dutch-based Afrikaans language — also means “haste.”
The government had appointed Koketso Growth, a heritage development company, to manage the statue. CEO Dali Tambo said he was furious when he heard about the rabbit, and said it must go.
The government had appointed Koketso Growth, a heritage development company, to manage the statue. CEO Dali Tambo said he was furious when he heard about the rabbit, and said it must go.
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