It's possible that this is not technically a lawn ornament, since it wasn't exactly in these people's yard, but "yard art" sounds too pretentious, and "driveway entrance decoration" is clunky, so we'll go with "lawn ornament."
This is located somewhere near Montpelier, IA. Or possibly Fairport, IA. Somewhere along the stretch of Highway 22 connecting Muscatine and the Quad Cities, in any case. I figured I would remember without writing it down, so I didn't write it down, and of course I don't remember.
It was very obviously one of those things we had to back up for so I could take a picture: you don't see these every day. I can't imagine how much work it must have been. For all the roughness of the design, it's pretty closely-observed: whoever made it definitely knew what a llama looked like, down to the eyelashes and the correct number of toes.
I know I'm just raising a bunch of questions and then not answering them: I don't know who made it, or why, or how much it's worth, or why it's a llama and not, like, a camel or horse or something, or who owns it, or anything. But I thought it was still something you needed to see. It's maybe not pink-and-blue Pegasus good, but still pretty awesome. And you'll notice they've got Christmas lights strung up on it, which I have to imagine adds to the effect, though we did not stay to see it.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Lawn Ornament: Metal Llama
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14 comments:
Yeah, very odd choice but strangely kinda cute..great close-up! Hmm..wonder what the house looked like! LOL on the memory card...
I know! That llama belonged to The Tinman. He threatened to spit (llamas spit, don't they? Or am I confusing them with camels?) at The Tinman who was terrified that he would start rusting up. He wanted to get rid of the llama but didnt have the heart to do so. So he left him in this garden.
That's my story and if you check around you'll find that its the absolute truth.
He really does have a wacky sense of humour though... you can see it in the glint in his eye.
I like it - I think it almost qualifies as "yard art", especially if you add a "folk art" qualifier.
I've always like llama art, and my DD's college mascot is a llama. Real llamas scare me though. Did you actually know offhand how many toes a llama has, or did you have to look it up?
I love it and it is metal art in my opinion.
Donna
Very cool. Reminds me of a piece I recently saw on TV about a welder who makes animal sculptures out of old chrome automobile bumpers.
I enjoy the comments as much as the post - Sunita's explanation and Sheila's question (about the toes).
I'm glad I'm not seeing it with fairy lights.
Lucy
Hey, at least it looks like a skilled artisan--even artist--did that! I'm sure to see it in its fuller setting would indeed make it stand out more. And why that animal? Speaking of lights, we have a neighbor who has one short something-or-other tre in their front yard. Hangin off on one side is a wad, yes a wad, of several hundred christmas lights. Been there for years.
sheila:
Neither, actually: I did a search for a picture, to gauge the verisimilitude, and whatever page I landed on (probably Wikipedia) happened to mention the toes thing.
Pink and blue Pegasus? That's good? Personally, I prefer classical mythology where Pegasus was all white. Fortunately, no one spray-painted the metal llama.
While I realize that it surely isn't everyone's "cup of tea", I'm very impressed with the craftsmanship. Whoever did the work did an excellant job. Reminds me of some metal art I have seen at art shows.
It is impressive, though it's hard for me not to imagine slicing a finger open on one of those curls. :)
Judy Berger owns this llama metal art sculpture. She is a remarkable lady who has been in the llama and alpaca business for a long time.
Anonymous:
Do you know anything about the artist, or how to get in touch with Berger? Not that I want one myself, but I'm really curious about the story behind it.
i <3 Metal Llama
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