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.
CHAOS: Iranians took to the streets playing celebratory music after reports of Khamenei’s death on Saturday, while mourners also gathered in Tehran yesterday Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the US, throwing the future of the Islamic republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old’s death early yesterday. US President Donald Trump said it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. The announcements came after a joint US and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or as long
An Emirates flight from Dubai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon, the first service of the airline since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday. Flight EK366 took off from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at 3:51am yesterday and landed at 4:02pm before taxiing to the airport’s D6 gate at Terminal 2 at 4:08pm, data from the airport and FlightAware, a global flight tracking site, showed. Of the 501 passengers on the flight, 275 were Taiwanese, including 96 group tour travelers, the data showed. Tourism Administration Deputy Director-General Huang He-ting (黃荷婷) greeted Taiwanese passengers at the airport and
TRUST: The KMT said it respected the US’ timing and considerations, and hoped it would continue to honor its commitments to helping Taiwan bolster its defenses and deterrence US President Donald Trump is delaying a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan to ensure his visit to Beijing is successful, a New York Times report said. The weapons sales package has stalled in the US Department of State, the report said, citing US officials it did not identify. The White House has told agencies not to push forward ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), it said. The two last month held a phone call to discuss trade and geopolitical flashpoints ahead of the summit. Xi raised the Taiwan issue and urged the US to handle arms sales to
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday said that it had confirmed on Saturday night with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil suppliers that shipments are proceeding as scheduled and that domestic supplies remain unaffected. The CPC yesterday announced the gasoline and diesel prices will rise by NT$0.2 and NT$0.4 per liter, respectively, starting Monday, citing Middle East tensions and blizzards in the eastern United States. CPC also iterated it has been reducing the proportion of crude oil imports from the Middle East and diversifying its supply sources in the past few years in response to geopolitical risks, expanding
RSS