Goggin likens the whole project to a quest for the Holy Grail. Right. Monty Python where are you? Seriously, confused doesn’t even cover this entire undertaking, because the methods he plans to employ are out-of-this-world batshit. He means to chisel this beast out of the ice with “Ancient Egyptian-inspired” tools. To fashion it after the foundations stones of the Great Pyramid of Giza, obviously. He’s then gonna have men, dogs, and maybe oxen… no wait! A sail kite! He’ll use a sail kite to aid in the journey. And after that’s done, he’ll stick the thing on a boat. What? No giant turtle to help you?
He then wants to tour the US with his giant ice cube before settling finally in New York. I picture chains and airplanes straight out of King Kong for this. Sub-zero glycol solution will be used to keep the ice frozen. And after all is said and done, he’ll permanently preserve it. For 488 years. Behind a laser grid, like it’s out of a fucking comic book. It’s at this point that you realise that sustaining this “spectacle” far outweighs whatever flimsy point he was trying to make.
I’m sorry, but this is so so stupid. I mean, the whole thing screams Cecil B. Demille, but in the worst possible ways. Who cares about a giant block of ice? Couldn’t your energies be far better spent elsewhere, like at the spot where your point stopped making sense? Couldn’t you at least try to look for dragons in the ice or something? Honestly. [SF Weekly]
Image: Hannamariah/Shutterstock
Corteks
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 12:28 PM“It’s at this point that you realise that sustaining this “spectacle” far outweighs whatever flimsy point he was trying to make.”
Agree x a bajillion. Seriously, make a point by doing something actually helpful rather than wasting heaps of energy and resources to try and make a point about NOT wasting heaps of energy and resources.
Also, the Earth has PLENTY more problems than supposed man-made climate change(the “man-made” part is important, the Earth is always changing and the point is that it’s changing because of us and not just part of a natural cycle). Maybe some artists can be original and try to tackle some harder issues like overpopulation, reliance on fossil fuels or the difficult question of energy production and making it safe, clean and plausible.
Hell if someone wanted to be real original maybe they could make some art challenging the ridiculous ideas of constant growth being a good thing. Maybe even challenge the idea that the economy isn’t the most important thing in our world. I guess that’s better left to awesome scientists like David Suzuki though…
George
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 12:38 PMOf course the effort and associated carbon cost of all this will simply make things worsererer!
ozoneocean
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 3:02 PMMy thoughts exactly!
XZ
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 12:40 PMHey Kwame,
The purpose of Art is to incite a reaction, whether it be positive or negative. Instead of being as you quote “so so stupid”, he has actually succeeded and achieved out of you exactly what he wanted. A reaction.
Kwame = 0
Goggin = 1
Joe
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 1:55 PM+1
Graeme
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:18 PM-2, because labelling something as “art” does not excuse it being crap.
Big Windows
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:14 PMStill a dick
Matt L
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:28 PMSo…. His masterpiece is complete then? He’s art was comedy this whole time? “Hahaha, jokes, this whole confusing mess of an idea is the art, I’m not actually going to do it”
Goggin = 1
Rest of world = 0
Honestly, that’s a point that the rest of the world doesn’t want anyway.
Horsebane
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:38 PMYeah and if this brian fella was a decent artist he might have gott the reaction he was hoping for.
huu
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:48 PMNot just a reaction, but an “Intellectual Reaction”.
Put a pile of shits on a plate also incite a reaction, but we dont call that art!
cayal
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 3:37 PMSo XY, if I call you a child molesting c***-head and you response with some mundane, neanderthanlic response I have essentially created art through words since I incited a reaction from you?
Brilliant.
olearymo
Thursday, July 7, 2011 at 8:57 AMHey, here’s a piece of poop. Does that cause a reaction! Awesome! Where’s my art grant?
danny
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:29 PMIf he was to cut it out and tow it unprotected to new york, he’d arrive with something that was about the size of a normal ice cube and would better illustrate the global warming issue he is pretending to highlight.
Seems to me like a really elaborate way to not work for a living.
Reminds me of that ep of the Simpsons “we lost another 2 men this trip, if only there was another way to get this ice to you”
polymath
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 2:49 PMWait? There’s Global Warming happening???
Thank God this man has done something to raise my awareness about it. How could I have missed this life changing information? I haven’t seen it mentioned anywhere else like TV, Radio or Newspapers. Please, please raise my awareness more.
“Raising awareness” is the “participant” medal for failed activists.
warcroft
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 4:24 PMHold on. . . are you (Gizmodo) calling us global warming ‘sceptics’ ignorant? Or this Goggin guy?
Greg
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 5:09 PMPerhaps your inability to parse the first sentence is a hint?
warcroft
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 5:51 PMWell the first sentence can be taken either way.
Greg
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 6:20 PMYeah, clearly it’s a bid by Groggin to remind himself, and Gizmodo felt he deserved some kind or rayal “we” plural, so chose to refer to him as “people”….. clearly.
Osiris Fox
Thursday, July 7, 2011 at 4:00 PMHey people, it strikes me that the actual point of this artful undertaking might actually be the unnecessariness and needless excess required to produce and maintain the final piece.
Think about it, it’s an allegory.
Evan
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 12:04 PMThis reminds me of the greatest prank in history;
Dick Smiths famous “Sydney Iceberg”, which he supposedly towed all the way from the Antarctic aboard the Dickenberg One. And which when in Sydney Harbour was going to be chopped up and sold to the public as “Dicksicles”. The Iceburg itself was just made of foam and cream and covered in plastic.
Dick Smith cops a lot of flak these days, but that prank was absolutely hilarious, I wish i’d been alive when it happened.