Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, the pioneer of the globetrotting giant inflatable Rubber Duck sculpture, the giant wooden hippo currently making its way down the Thames, and the giant bamboo kitten he set loose in Shanghai in June, has unleashed yet another large-scale animal sculpture, this time in the county of Taoyuan in northern Taiwan on the occasion of the Mid-Autumn (Moon) Festival, the AFP reports.
The huge yet playful creature drew 350,000 viewers on Monday alone. “The number has beaten our expectations, we expected up to 200,000 visits a day,” a government official told the AFP on condition of her anonymity. Measuring 82.5 feet tall, the white rabbit sculpture is titled Moon Rabbit and made of waterproof paper material, wood, and polystyrene. Predictably, it has overshadowed other installations and performances in the festival by artists from China and Taiwan.
The creation was inspired by a tale from ancient Chinese folklore about a goddess who lived on the moon with a rabbit who constantly mixed a rejuvenating elixir for her consumption. “Hofman said he felt the rabbit might need to take a break after working on the moon for thousands of years,” the official said of the work’s reclining position. It is propped against a bunker at a formal naval air base.
Since 2007, versions of Hofman’s duck have traveled to 19 cities in 11 countries, including Brazil, Australia, the United States, and Hong Kong (see “Giant Rubber Duck Lands at Virginia’s Chrysler Museum“). Unfortunately for those not traveling to Taiwan anytime soon, the Moon Rabbit is set to remain in Taiwan after the festival closes on Sunday.