Blue rooster sculpture to permanently stay at National Gallery of Art

WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - The sculpture of a blue rooster, named Hahn/Cock, that sits atop the East Building of the National Gallery of Art will permanently remain there, according to the Glenstone Museum.

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Hahn/Cock debuted in America in July 2016 after being displayed in London's Trafalgar Square for three years. It was made to fill the square's fourth empty plinth and the artist, Katharina Fritsch, made the sculpture as "a cheeky feminist retort to the 19th-century commemorations of male warriors, including an unrealized sculpture of King William IV for which the plinth was initially constructed."

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 25: A blue French cockerel by German artist Katharina Fritsch is unveiled on top of the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square on July 25, 2013 in London, England. The five-metre high fibreglass giant blue French cockerel was instal

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The Glenstone Museum loaned the sculpture to the National Gallery of Art in 2016. Now, it has been donated to the nation's art museum on its 80th anniversary "in honor of the resilience of the American people during the COVID-19 pandemic."

"Hahn/Cock has brought smiles to millions of faces since it first arrived as a loan to the National Gallery's new sculpture terrace. We are grateful to Mitch and Emily Rales for their generous birthday gift, which will allow visitors to enjoy Katharina Fritsch's work for years to come," said Kaywin Feldman, director of the National Gallery of Art. "We look forward to the moment when our visitors and staff can once again commune with their favorite, uplifting blue rooster."

The National Gallery of Art is currently closed. However, Hahn/Cock will be illuminated every night beginning Wednesday to be viewed from a distance.