I’ve seen some oversized handbags in my time, but Ries Niemi’s purse takes the cake. The industrial artist’s 14-foot handbag is now on display at the Whatcom Museum in Bellingham, Washington.
The stainless steel sculpture, which stands in the Lightcatcher building courtyard, is billed as the World’s Largest Walk Thru Handbag. However I’d wager it might just be the world’s largest handbag of any description! It was inspired by the ever-expanding bags of women everywhere, and the drive-through tree stumps found in America’s Northwest.
You could never utilize a handbag quite so large, so what’s the point? Niemi seems to be making a statement about modern society and its obsession with the almighty dollar, as the sculpture’s open metalwork is decorated with diamonds, $100 bills, and dollar sign motifs.
Happily you don’t need to have a lot of cash lying around to enjoy it. The sculpture is accessible to the public even if they don’t pay for museum entry. It’ll remain on site until September 11, and then who knows?
I’d hate to see such a metal monstrosity ending up in landfill. Perhaps Niemi could dissect it and create many smaller metal handbags for us to use. Although after creating such a ginormous one, perhaps he doesn’t want to see another purse again!
[Source: KY3]
[Image Source: Jongela19/Flickr]
