I chanced upon this tall striking red dog half-squatting and pooping underneath the canopy of the Cathay Building. Meet POPek, one of four dogs which were birthed as part of ‘Singapore Cathay Centre Balloon Dog’ art exhibition in 2018. Image Credit: Whatshisname
Besides POPek Red, it’s other three smaller companion dogs are named Happy POPek Teal, PEEpek Yellow and Howling POPek Pink. These iconic colourful balloon dogs were designed by London-based artist Sebastian Burdon who goes by the online moniker ‘whatshisname’ together with local creative studio Mighty Jaxx.
The artist Sebastian got the idea for his alias ‘whatshisname’ through his personal struggle in remembering other artists’ names plus being inspired by the song “Whatshername” by American punk band Green Day.
The colourful quartet is part of the artist’s nostalgic world of balloon animals named POPIKI — a popular series of art collectibles developed by the artist and the creative studio.
POPIKI reimagine familiar balloon models as happy real-life animals and the artist hopes to stimulate inspiration, unleash creativity and evoke a sense of wonder in his viewers with this playful series. POPIKI also pays homage to pop culture by transforming ordinary subjects into contemporary artworks that can be enjoyed by masses.
The permanent installation at The Cathay comprises four brightly-coloured balloon dogs, mimicking various actions of real-life dogs. The most iconic silhouette of a pooping balloon dog in striking red hue, POPek, stands four metres tall under the canopy at the main entrance of the building.
Alongside POPek is a smaller two-metre long Happy POPek in a cool turquoise, playing with a ball in a matching colour. A little further down the atrium, stands the cheeky two-metre PEEPek, in a vibrant yellow, raising a leg to do what dogs do, on the pillar beside the Automated Teller Machine.
The last of the series is the two-metre long hot pink Howling - a new design that made its worldwide debut appearance through this installation and can be found beside the directory board on the ground floor.
From planning to constructing, these sculptures took about four months to create and complete. Starting with 3D sculpting of small prototypes, these were then scaled up proportionally using poly foams to form different parts of the sculpture.
These parts were then glued together using industrial adhesive. Once they are satisfied with its shape and form, strong weather-resistant fibreglass were layered on, buffed smooth and then multiple layers of paint added on before giving it a final varnish.
The next time you are nearby to the Cathay Building, head over to check out the poop of POPek.
