About 8,000 admirers braved the cold yesterday to watch the Rubber Duck sculpture at Keelung’s harbor, despite the absence of its creator, who reportedly was upset over the poor arrangements for the show.
Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman was upset about the arrangement for his Rubber Duck installation on display in Keelung and criticized the organizers for turning it into a “commercial circus,” local media reported yesterday, citing a letter written by the artist.
A day earlier, Hofman canceled his trip to inaugurate the duck display in the northern city, expressing disappointment over how the sculpture is being portrayed in Taiwan.
Staff writer, with CNA
“The rubber duck must show a place in a different perspective as it is, pure and simple, but now we learn it is turning into a commercial circus which we don’t approve of and of course dislike,” Hofman’s team was quoted as saying in a response to the Chinese-language United Evening News’ request for his opinion on the Keelung exhibition.
The emergence of unauthorized rubber duck-themed merchandise has also upset the artist, local media reported.
Among the products allegedly infringing copyright are rubber duck-themed stored value cards used for transportation or other payments, issued by the Taiwan Smart Card Corp (台灣智慧卡公司).
The company held a press conference on Friday evening and explained that it has acquired permission from the organizers to use the duck’s image.
It promised to correct any mistakes that could have resulted in a misunderstanding.
Earlier last week, Hofman also rejected the organizers’ proposal to make a 360-degree rotation of the rubber duck, as it contravenes his idea of simplicity and tranquility.
Still, in the letter, the team said Hofman and his family liked Taiwan and enjoyed the previous legs of the duck campaign in the southern city of Kaohsiung and the northern county of Taoyuan.
Hofman’s team said they are investigating whether the organizers of the display in Keelung have violated the terms of their contract, adding that they will keep an eye on further developments regarding the duck’s display in the port city.
Meanwhile, bundled up in scarfs and jackets, fans of the 18m-tall, 1,300kg duck yesterday flooded to the pier and took photographs with the installation art.
There were even fans from Greater Taichung who took a 5am train to be on time to get a peep at the duck.
The Keelung government estimated that the rubber duck, which has created a craze on its tour to Kaohsiung and Taoyuan earlier this year, would attract more than 6 million visitors during its 50-day exhibition.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Friday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
FORCED LABOR: A US court listed three Taiwanese and nine firms based in Taiwan in its indictment, with eight of the companies registered at the same address Nine companies registered in Taiwan, as well as three Taiwanese, on Tuesday were named by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) as a result of a US federal court indictment. The indictment unsealed at the federal court in Brooklyn, New York, said that Chen Zhi (陳志), a dual Cambodian-British national, is being indicted for fraud conspiracy, money laundering and overseeing Prince Holding Group’s forced-labor scam camps in Cambodia. At its peak, the company allegedly made US$30 million per day, court documents showed. The US government has seized Chen’s noncustodial wallet, which contains
SENATE RECOMMENDATION: The National Defense Authorization Act encourages the US secretary of defense to invite Taiwan’s navy to participate in the exercises in Hawaii The US Senate on Thursday last week passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026, which strongly encourages the US secretary of defense to invite Taiwan’s naval forces to participate in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, as well as allocating military aid of US$1 billion for Taiwan. The bill, which authorizes appropriations for the military activities of the US Department of Defense, military construction and other purposes, passed with 77 votes in support and 20 against. While the NDAA authorizes about US$925 billion of defense spending, the Central News Agency yesterday reported that an aide of US