1 November 2007
Someone just sent me this video today, and I don’t know what to make of it. All I know is that the persons who sent me the video are part of a small Denver design and fabrication studio named Double Butter. I know they have an incredible talent for making fine furniture. I know that their collective produces some pretty nice art as well. What I can’t figure out is what the hell this video they sent me is all about. From what I gather, Double Butter takes the green steel bench shown in the picture above, and installs it in front of places of cultural significance such as the Denver Art Museum. These installations appear to be completely unsanctioned and unwarranted. Now, I don’t know about you, but that takes some serious balls. And the film shows all their antics happening in broad daylight. I give them major credit for their daring, and fortunately I think the bench they have installed is a fine addition to the landscape. The one thing that I’m completely shocked about, though, is not the bench, not the act of installing the bench, but how completely vacant and lifeless Denver appears to be in the middle of the day. From the video, there seems to be no one on the streets. It reminds me of a scene out of this movie I saw last night called 28 Weeks Later where a virus kills every single human being in the UK and the city of London is left completely empty. Maybe they should have considered shooting the scenes in Denver judging by how easy it would be to clear the streets. I’m not saying at all that it doesn’t take any less guts to do a renegade installation, but I think it would be more fun for me as the audience if they installed one of these things in front of a police station as cops are walking by. Or better yet, come to San Francisco and install one of these in front of my house…please!
URL: www.doublebutter.com
Lust Factor: Hot
Categories: Art | Furniture | Green | Lust Factor: Hot | Metal
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Comments:
November 2nd, 2007 at 1:33 pm
You have to understand that where they installed the bench in front of the DAM is a pedestrian mall (no auto traffic) and I’m assuming they did the install in the early AM so there isn’t a lot of traffic. Had they done the install in front of the Michael Graves designed library one block away, or in front of the Geo Ponti designed portion of the DAM on 14th St, there would have been much more traffic (not that I think anyone would have done anything to stop them anyway). Of course had this been NYC, there would be guys checking for their bench installers union card and if not provided, shake them down for a few hundred$$$.
The MCA install seemed to be documented with still images but I certainly saw much of the ongoing finish up construction in some of the scenes (the building is just recently completed and had a grand opening last Sunday). I could see how anyone by the MCA might think the bench install was just part of all the grand opening festivities.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:53 pm
Thanks for the added information. It’s a great project. I’ve been wanting to take a visit to Denver. Our office, along with a couple of other design firms, designed a new development in Denver called Taxi2(check out the site: http://www.taxibyzeppelin.com ) This too would be a good place for some renegade bench installations. This project is chocked full of funky patrons.