The New York Times
May 18, 2012
HOTEL’S NEW SCULPTURE
By Carol Vogel
Since the sculpture of Companion has moved on from its spot outside the Standard Hotel, the hotelier André Balazs is installing a new piece, this one by the Vienna-based artist Erwin Wurm.
Called “Big Kastenmann,” it is a figure with legs but no head that stands 18 feet tall; its body is shaped like a box and wears a partly pink coat. “It’s a bit surreal,” Mr. Wurm said in a telephone interview. “Normally artists put things on a pedestal, but I found it really interesting to give them legs.”
“Big Kastenmann,” made of cast aluminum, is Mr. Wurm’s first work of public art in New York. It will be on view from June 19 through Oct. 31.
Mr. Balazs said he knew Mr. Wurm’s work well. “It’s playful, witty, ironic,” he explained. “Totally in the spirit of the Standard.”