City council approves a second ring for Calgary’s growing art installation list

By Ramiro Bustamante Torres, October 16 2023—

Last week, an emergency meeting with Calgary’s city council expedited the approval of another art installation to act as a sequel to the divisive and controversial blue ring, Travelling Light by inges idee. The decision to push for another ring has already put the city council under pressure from the public as many people have expressed disdain for the blue ring already.

“We already have one eyesore in the city, so why add a second one,” said Morton Staffer, an angry resident of Calgary. “Every time I drive past it, I stick my tongue out to show how much I hate it.”

There have been other citizens who are more than excited about the new ring and have already begun theorizing about the colour and placement of the ring. There has been no official statement on the original artist coming back or when the work will begin construction. The only information that has been released is the approval of a second ring to be created for the city’s landscape. 

“I’ve been so excited since I heard the announcement, my group and I have been pushing the city council for a second ring since the five-year anniversary of the blue ring in 2018,” said Evan Canapé, the president of a local art fanatics group. “When I first laid my eyes on the blue ring, my life was changed forever and I just had to commemorate it by getting it tattooed on me.”

The second ring has caused a divide within the city but approval has already gone through. The city council has passed it off to a committee that will oversee the hiring of the artist and construction of the ring. Speculation has risen that the ring might bear a colour from one of the Olympic rings as a way to push for a future Olympic bid, though the recent bid had shown the majority voting against it. However, the city council has remained tight-lipped about the reasoning behind the emergency approval –– except for a statement announcing the ring should be in the city by the new year. While Calgary has a growing art scene, the use of the budget has left a lot of questions on whether it’s used effectively to help Calgarians with opportunities, and if a local artist will be hired for the project.

“We sincerely hope Calgarians can see our city grow in the arts sector as we begin to add more to our picturesque landscape,” read the statement from the City of Calgary. 

For more information on already existing art installations, visit the city’s website here.

This article is part of our humour section as a part of the Fake News column.