Spoonbridge won't have its iconic cherry for five weeks

Photo by tboard

The cherry atop the Walker Art Center's sculpture garden spoonbridge is getting a fresh coat of bright red paint starting Monday. That means the spoon will be on its own for about five weeks.

The 1,200-pound stainless steel cherry will be removed and painted off-site, says the Downtown Journal.

The sculpture was commissioned by the Walker in 1985 and created by husband-and-wife team Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. It was installed in 1988. Van Bruggen died in January. She was 66.

The spoon and cherry will be back together come early spring and the fountain will be up and running this summer.