Duck, Duck, What a Duck!

I spent Sunday with a duck. Not just any duck, mind you. But a Duck. An enormous yellow rubber Duckie that was moored to a dock in the Los Angeles Harbor.  You might have seen him on the news.  He was quite the sensation because, well, he’s a six-story  high rubber Duckie.

The Duck is the brainchild of the Dutch artist Forentijn Hofman and just about most fun art project I’ve ever seen.  Hofman’s inspiration for the Duckie was a now-famous shipwreck in 1992.

At that time a boatload of children’s bath toys – there were green frogs and blue turtles aboard as well as 28,000 yellow ducks—from the First Years Toy Company in China capsized on its way to the US. While that alone might count as a major tragedy for those of us who cherish rubber ducks, it didn’t really make a dent in the world’s consciousness. Until the ducks started washing up on beaches around the world.

First an armada of ducks hit the shores of Alaska. Then they bobbed their way to Japan and Hawaii. By 2001 ducks were turning up in Maine and Massachusetts before some actually made their way to Scotland, Ireland and Britain. Those yellow bath ducks were everywhere.

 Apparently if you want some sturdy toys forget Playskool, turn instead to the First Years Toy Company – they build things to last. Along the way the ducks developed quite the fan club. Hundreds of people scour beaches around the world collecting them. Books have been written about them.

But by 2000, Duckie fans weren’t the only ones taking an interest.  Scientists were also paying attention. Apparently the ducks travel itineraries  told the men and women of science a great deal about the changing patterns of ocean currents around the world. Though that fascinated scientists, the rest of us were just charmed by the little guys.

Forentiijn Hofman was a natural to latch onto the ducks. His work tends to be large and whimsical. He has created a gigantic pink cat that appears to be made out of yarn, a pink pig that suspends from above, (the proverbial ‘flying pig’) and ginormous green frog sporting a party hat that he parked on top of a building. The Duckie is his biggest and most popular attraction. Because it’s completely charming.

The giant Duck, like it’s tiny predecessors, is a world traveler. (Actually, Hofman makes a new duck for every installation; his work isn’t nearly as sturdy as that of the First Years Toy Company.) It’s passport has been stamped by appearances in harbors and rivers in Taiwan,  cities in Belgium, Sydney , New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong and London. In the US, the Duck visited Pittsburgh and heralded the opening of the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia.

When it floated into the Los Angeles Harbor last week the Duck immediately created controversy.  The Duck was billed as part of a Tall Ships Festival.  Usually Tall Ships, the high masted sailing ships from the past, are enough to draw a crowd.  They spark visions of the Pirates of the Caribbean, and days of yore. Besides, they are beautiful. 

But even magnificent schooners pale a little when parked next to a forty foot tall yellow Duckie.  Okay, they fade a lot.  The Duck was a sensation.

The Duck was originally scheduled to be placed out in the Harbor, free to be seen by one and all. But then the organizers realized that next to no one was paying the $7 admission, or purchasing pirate-themed stuff from the vendors, or eating at the food trucks. The only merchandise that was moving was six-inch models of the duck.

So after an unanticipated ruckus from the vendors, the Duck was hauled into the dock and installed at the end of the row of Tall Ships. Instant hit. Sort of.

Now everyone who wanted to have a good view of the Duck had to pay the admission price. It didn’t slow the massive crowds.  Literally thousands came to check out the Duck. As a bonus, the Tall Ships were on view as well.

With the Duck in port, it was  now possible to get great selfies with the Duck. Virtually every person who came out to see it took advantage of the opportunity. And why not? More than likely, it was a once in a lifetime chance.

The only thing that was odd was the reaction of the kids visiting the Duck. There were zillions of them, but they didn’t really care about the Duck. While parents were entranced with the extreme fowl, the little ones were more taken with the faux pirates that were running around selling plastic swords.  Huh?

Maybe kids are so jaded by CGI Mutant Ninja Turtles and the like, that a monstrous yellow floating Duck is just business as usual. Which is kind of heartbreaking.

The children weren’t even all that excited by the “Baby Duck” that sat outside of the area. It was a mere 10 feet tall, and they could touch it.

Me, I loved the whole thing.  The Duck blew my mind.  And the Baby Duck would look absolutely awesome in my front yard. Quacking in the wind.