Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Bolt of Lightning: Bad Art
A tall-but-scrawny lightning bolt, kite, and key, held in place by wires, sculpted by Isamu Noguchi in 1984. Officially titled, "Bolt of Lightning: A Memorial to Benjamin Franklin." Critics called it lousy art.
- Address:
- 200 N. 6th St., Philadelphia, PA
- Directions:
- At the foot of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, just north of Race St. between N. 5th and N. 6th Sts.
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This memorial sculpture to Benjamin Franklin was originally conceived and drawn up way back in 1933. It was eventually fabricated and installed in 1984 (What took so long?). If you want to get a close-up look, you'll need to cross four lanes of very busy traffic. Be extra careful! It's known as the ugliest piece of art in town, but we must confess the more we walked around and studied it, the more if sort of grew on us. By the time we left, we actually liked it!
[Mike Gassmann, 11/02/2018]
The flag-lined plaza is surrounded by a highway interchange. The art can be seen from the adjacent Franklin Square, which was much more pleasant.
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A familiar marvel for drivers racing off the Ben Franklin Bridge into Philly.