DUMBO is going to the dogs, and these sculptures prove it
The whimsical “Paparazzi Dogs,” by Australian husband-and-wife team Gillie and Marc, have been installed beneath the Manhattan Bridge in the Pearl Street Triangle, and at the entrance to the Main Street Dog Run at Plymouth and Adams Streets.
“We’re so excited that our ‘Paparazzi Dogs’ are in New York,” Gillie said in a statement. “They’ve travelled the globe taking photos, and now they’ve arrived at this fun, trendy place that has been photographed more than anywhere else, and that leaves you feeling so stimulated.”
Gillie and Marc are known for their Rabbitgirl and Dogman sculptures, which tell the story of an unlikely couple’s love as they travel the globe in search of art and adventure. The two artists first met in Hong Kong, according to their website (gillieandmarc.com). Seven days later they were married in the foothills of Mount Everest, and have been creating art together ever since.
The artists’ goal is to create “joyful, thought-provoking and interactive works that celebrate unlikely unions while inspiring us to re-examine the status quo,” they say.
In the playful DUMBO pieces, Dogman stars as the earnest-faced photographer eager to get a shot at a passing celeb.
The Paparazzi Dogs sculptures “have gone from being an art experiment about photographing celebrities to being sought-after celebrities in their own right,” according to a release from the DUMBO Improvement District, which sponsored the artworks in collaboration with the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Art Program and Brooklyn Bridge Park.
“DUMBO plays hosts to thousands of photo shoots a year, and is a seriously dog friendly neighborhood,” Alexandria Sica, DUMBO Improvement District executive director, said in a statement. “With the epic Manhattan Bridge as your backdrop, pose for the ‘Paparazzi Dogs’ and step into your very own Brooklyn photo shoot.”
