Iwo Jima Flag Raising in Pipes

Bottineau, North Dakota

Although instantly recognizable to patriotic American hindbrains as a World War II Iwo Jima tribute, this version strips away the usual figurative padding. When even a nation's pipe cleaners and popsicle sticks risk death for victory, you know it's total war.

The six soldiers raising this flag are fashioned from black metal pipes, each topped with a GI helmet. The banner itself is a sheet of slightly bent black metal.

The sculpture was created in 2020 for the 75th anniversary of World War II's most photogenic flag raising, and was part of a Bottineau civic project. It was later moved to a strip of rural frontage a couple miles north of town, far away from the visual attention battlefield.