Giant inflatable pink man suddenly pops up in tiny town

'I thought it might be a bouncy castle that you climb into through the back passage...'

Walking by the grounds of Ruthin School in north Wales, you might wonder why a 43ft-tall giant inflatable pink man squatting on all fours grins down upon passersby.

The giant man who hovers over a ball has caused quite a stir among locals, who woke up to the bizarre sight on July 8.

Some have called it a ‘monstrosity’ and ‘not art’, while others really dislike ‘the sickly pink colour of the piece’.

But Ruthin School where the inflatable is based tweeted news to say it has been put up for the Ruthin International Arts Festival by Yue Minjun.

On the festival’s website, it says it is designed to ‘creatively enliven the historic North Wales town of Ruthin as a dynamic living arts scene’.

It is the first time the festival has featured in the town and runs from June 28 to July 28.

Minjun created an artwork in 2007 called Execution which sold at auction for £2.9million.

In a photo taken with the giant inflatable man, Minjun can be seen standing in front of it at the school.

But locals fear this artwork has gone too far because it is scaring children and can be seen for miles around.

A woman said: ‘We live halfway up the hill in Llanbedr and we can see his bum from there.’

The artwork across the festival is designed to ‘evoke genuine emotions, provoke thoughtful reflection or spark a visceral response’.

Well it has certainly got people in Ruthin talking with one woman saying: ‘You call that art?

‘Oh please, he looks constipated. If this is how he feels about himself, maybe keep it to himself. Monstrosity’

And a former teacher remarked: ‘I thought it might be a bouncy castle that you climb into through the back passage…’

Art is always subjective though and one man liked the piece and said: ‘It makes people laugh and joke about it.’

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