After 300 visits to 25 cities, this big red ball had had enough.
On Friday, a 15-foot-tall, 250-pound inflated red ball known as the RedBall Project broke loose from an alleyway, where it was wedged between two retailers, and barreled through the streets of Toledo, Ohio. The culprit was strong winds which “popped that sucker like a champagne cork!” according to its maker, Brooklyn-based artist Kurt Perschke, via Reddit, and set it free.
Mr. Perschke’s ball had been invited to town by the Toledo Museum of Art for its summer “Play Time” exhibition (the “RedBall Project” involves the oversized ball appearing, “squeezed into,” spots across the world) .But it seems the ball insisted on seeing what downtown Toledo had to offer.
The ball, which Mr. Perschke describes as “a catalyst for new encounters within the everyday,” on his website, made a left turn on St. Clair Street, shortly after its first taste of freedom, where it encountered a row of cars.
The only injury was to a stop sign, which, we’re sure, will be hiring a lawyer.
A few “minders” hired by Mr. Perschke, along with some museum staffers and bystanders, bravely chased down the ball before “putting it down, according to ABC News. ” The ball was reportedly reinstalled and on site until today, when it skips town for France.
Apparently this is a new trick for the big red ball, which has traveled to Abu Dhabi, Sydney and Montreal, without incident. “In the 10 years of this installation, nothing like this has never happened,” said Mr. Perschke.
