BOSTON (WHDH) - A surprising sight in Boston is turning heads — but it’s no accident, it’s art.
Folks in Boston’s Downtown Crossing found themselves quite surprised Thursday when they saw it.
The artwork, named “Alouette,” is a replica of a Canadian satellite from 1962 designed to look like it crashed onto a car.
“You’re walking down the street and the next thing you see, this kind of robot on a car,” said one passer-by. “I thought the car was crushed, but in Boston anything can happen.”
It’s the latest addition to ‘Winteractive,’ Downtown Boston’s outdoor winter art exhibition hosted by the Downtown Boston Alliance.
A number of displays are popping up throughout the city, including large, pink inflatables called “Mister Pink.” They’ve been spotted on buildings all over downtown Boston.
As for the satellite, Canadian artist Brandon Vickerd is the man who made it.
“It’s partially like a throwback to the age of space exploration when technology held this great promise of like a modernist future where everything was going to be better but in a lot of ways it exists like a modern Icarus,” said Vickerd. “Like that idea of hubris and flying too close to the sun and then falling back to earth but it’s also a bit of a joke right?”
Vickerd hasn’t seen the piece here in Boston yet, but when he heard about people’s reactions, he says that’s really the point.
“I always really enjoy it because it ends up being like a pointed conversation between people who might not otherwise talk to each other,” Vickerd said.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)