SML-406 Boston Gas Tank
SML-406 Boston Gas Tank
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| reference numbers | SML-406: Boston Gas Tank (L) |
| description | miniature of large natural gas tank near waterfront south of Boston |
| dimensions | height = 3 inches; diameter = 2 3/4 inches |
| topics and series | Topics:
Buildings
& Structures Series: None |
| related items | none |
| first issued/withdrawn/ discontinued forever |
1971/-/- |
| private issue and/or limited edition & quantity | private issue for Boston Gas Company. Quantity unknown |
| era first introduced. | Lance |
| value range | Rare |
| auction notes | has been sold at auctions several years ago in 300/400 range |
| comments/observations | Painted by artist Corita Kent. suitable as a paperweight |
GENERAL INFORMATION. In 1971, Boston Gas commissioned artists Corita Kent to use one of two large natural-gas tanks in Dorchester as a giant canvas. The result was an instant landmark: a rainbow of colored stripes that greets motorists on Rte. 93 and which is the world's largest copyrighted art work.
But did Kent, active in protesting the Vietnam War, add a political statement to the piece? Look closely at the left side of the blue stripe, and you'll see a man's profile. Now follow that profile down and an unmistakable beard appears - that of Ho Chi Minh.Kent has since died, so she's not talking. But Boston Gas ardently denies any political tinge, saying the profile is a coincidence. A couple of years ago, when the company tore down the tank with the art on it, it had it re-painted on the remaining tank. Tank purists quickly noted that the profile had a rounder, less Ho-like nose. Boston Gas insisted the rounder beak was more in keeping with what it says was Kent's original design.
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Revised: December 11, 2004