A few weeks ago, right when the Pokemon Go craze was really hitting its peak, a giant statue of Pikachu was erected in a New Orleans park overnight. As it sat atop a non-working fountain in Coliseum Park, the monument started to receive more and more attention. Unfortunately, that attention hasn’t all been great as the monument has been slightly vandalized and started controversy as to what should be done with the piece. Before now, the artist responsible had remained anonymous and did not comment on how or why the statue was placed in downtown New Orleans for all to see. But now whoever is behind this has spoken up and said they want
…to use that positive momentum [the statue has garnered] to bring about a larger, more permanent change for our community. We have donated #Pokémonument to the Coliseum Square Association to be auctioned off to help fund the restoration of the fountains in the park.”
A generous gesture to be sure, but even if the Pikachu statue had stayed put it would probably have lost it’s uniqueness eventually. This way, some Pokemon super fan can install it into their garden or apartment (to each their own) and make it a part of their daily routine. The money generated by the auction will go towards an endowment that will be used for beautifying the gardens, bringing back the fountains, and overall enriching the area for the community.