An Artist’s Grocery List Becomes A Giant Monument In Central Park

An immense granite monument to the mundane was erected in Central Park last week by the Public Art Fund. The 17-foot-tall stone slab is inscribed with a message that, by virtue of the medium, could outlast the civilization around it. For his new sculpture, MEMORIAL, British artist and author David Shrigley has carefully chosen words like “sausages,” “Nutella,” and “tampons”—like a deadpan “Ozymandias,” it’s possible the only record left of a post-apocalyptic New York City will be a grocery list.

More info: David Shrigley, Public Art Fund, “Ozymandias” (h/t: thecreatorsproject)

“It’s a composite of lists from several friends in NYC,” he explains to The Creators Project. “Amanda at my gallery commented that it was a bit of a bourgeois shopping list so we swapped out a few of the fancy stuff for more mainstream fare. Rice wine vinegar for ketchup, for example.”