Me & The “American Gothic” Duo (Part 2)

Grant Wood’s “American Gothic” duo will be hanging out in the Cedar Rapids area for the rest of the summer. 25 statues have been on display around Cedar Rapids for several weeks in honor of Wood’s 125th birthday. There's something about fiberglass statues that makes you want to pull out a camera.  This particular duo resides just outside of the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art...

Grant Wood was born in rural Iowa in February 1891, and spent a considerable amount of his life living in Cedar Rapids. Of course, “American Gothic” – which now resides at the Art Institute of Chicago – is his most famous work. I did find one feature of the fiberglass statues a bit troubling. What does the old dude do with his right hand at the end of the day when nobody is looking? Check it out...

Back in June, my son and I mugged for the camera with the statues that reside at Lindale Mall.  I'll try to make it a summer project to find as many of these as I can in the coming weeks... kind of a "Where's Waldo?" thing to keep me busy.  According to The Gazette, Chicago Fiberglass Works created the white base forms which cost about $1,200 apiece. The project was financed through grants and sponsorships.

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