Residents in False Creek South say a small site in their neighbourhood isn’t the right place for a 2.5-storey sculpture of a boy holding a shark.
The Vancouver Biennale wants to instal the artwork by Chinese artist Chen Wenling on a round, raised garden area by the Seawall to the east of Moberly Road in July for two years.
Boy Holding a Shark is 7.8 metres high — or about 2.5 storeys and depicts a blue-green boy holding a shark. It’s estimated to weigh 1,200 kilograms, the equivalent of a compact car.
Natalie Wilson lives on the second storey of the condo building which looks northeast onto the site of proposed sculpture.
Wilson said her concern isn’t with the art, but with its location and size, which will obstruct her views.
“I think the size of it is huge,” she said.
“I think we’re fortunate that we get to have art coming from all around the world. I don’t have an objection to the art itself.”
She’s also concerned by the sculpture drawing crowds to an area that’s already often dense with people using the Seawall.
“I think there are other locations that it could go that would be more suitable,” she said.
Barry Mowatt, founder, president and curator of the Vancouver Biennale, said he choose the site because it’s a prominent location. This summer, the Biennale is launching We are Ocean- Vancouver.
“Boy Holding a Shark is an opportunity to be conscious about our oceans and what we’re doing to them as humans,” Mowatt said.
Maggie Rayner said many of the residents who live in the area are contacting the city and the Vancouver Biennale with their concerns about the proposed location.
“They’re in the process of trying to figure out how to take their protest further,” said Rayner, who lives in the building next to the proposed sculpture.
“I would really prefer to see local artists featured perhaps in a small installation that wasn’t as obtrusive in the landscape,” she said. “What do I dislike about it? It’s bright blue. I think it’s a little startling.”
