One of the Twin Cities' iconic images is getting a new coat of paint.
The cherry portion of the Walker Art Center's "Spoonbridge and Cherry" was removed this morning for repainting.
The stainless-steel cherry, weighing in at 1,200 pounds, was hoisted from the tip of the mammoth spoon by a 110-ton crane.
It's now on its way to Hugo, where it will be sloshed in the same paint that is used for yachts and barges. The bright-red orb should be back on its familiar perch in about five weeks.
The artwork has adorned the Sculpture Garden near Minneapolis' Loring Park since 1988 and has been a signature image for the metro area.
It was designed by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. The husband and wife produced a number of large-scale sculptures of everyday objects, such as a flashlight in Las Vegas and a firehouse in Freiburg, Switzerland. Coosje van Bruggen died January 10 at age 66. She had been battling breast cancer.
The mammoth sculpture was constructed by two New England ship-building firms.
Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482
