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Artistic Flair Advances at Arthur Ashe Stadium
Fiberglass Dinosaur Sculpture is the Off-Court Favorite
PITTSBURGH,
August 28, 2003 - Watch out for the top-seeded dinosaur! A
tennis star of a dramatically different stature is making
its "DinoMite" debut at the 2003 US Open. A 250-pound Stegosaurus
dinosaur art sculpture is serving up a splash of prehistoric
panache for tennis enthusiasts.
Standing
five-feet high and nine-feet long inside Arthur Ashe Stadium,
the Stegosaurus themed Tennisaurus, is on-serve
for adults and children interested in art, dinosaurs, tennis
and science history. The US Open's official dinosaur is one
of 100 decorated, scientifically accurate dinosaurs that are
adorning the parks, plazas and streets of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
for DinoMite DaysSM — a public art
exhibit organized by Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
"Tennisaurus has become one of the stars of this year's US Open," said USTA Chairman of the Board and President Alan Schwartz. "It's not only a fanciful piece of art, but a great conversation piece. Most important, we plan to have it signed by some of the most recognizable legends of our game such as Billie Jean King and Ken Rosewall. It will be auctioned with proceeds benefiting the Carnegie Museum of Natural History's "Dinosaur Hall," and the USTA Tennis & Education Foundation, to help ensure that the benefits of sport and education never become extinct."
Doubles
Match-Up
Tennis enthusiasts and mother-daughter artists, Nellie Lou
Slagle and Susie Perelman, teamed up to create a DinoMite
Days original for the 2003 US Open. Emerging on the courts
of New York, Tennisaurus is decked out with official
tennis racquets, shoes, balls and a net. The spikes along
the dinosaur's spine also are lined with tennis court terrain.
The Steg will be on display inside the main entrance
of Arthur Ashe throughout the tournament before advancing
to the next round — a gala auction in Pittsburgh to
raise funds for non-profit organizations.
"As an
artist, I have worked with tennis and sports motifs, however,
this was my first project combining a three-dimensional dinosaur
with one of the world's largest sports attractions," said
Susie Perelman, artist and chairperson of DinoMite Days.
"This sculpture combines the world's timeless fascination
of dinosaurs with the game of tennis in a new and colorful
light, offering players a platform to show a fun side of their
nature."
DinoMite
Days brings the wonders of dinosaurs, art and science
to life in ways never seen before. The free, outdoor exhibit
in Pittsburgh features three types of 200 to 500-pound fiberglass
dinosaurs that have been meticulously decorated by artists
and students. Visitors to Pittsburgh encounter DinoMite
Days dinosaurs in public plazas, parks, and on sidewalks.
Tennisaurus
will be part of the dinosaur auction on October 18, 2003,
at a black-tie gala event in Pittsburgh. Each dinosaur will
be auctioned off at the event or online and half of the proceeds
will benefit the expansion of Carnegie Museum of Natural History's
"Dinosaur Hall," and the "sponsaur" of each dinosaur will
select a nonprofit organization to receive the remaining proceeds
from the auctioned dinosaur. Information about how to buy
a dinosaur, site locations and additional details about DinoMIte
Days is available at www.dinomitedays.org.
About
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Founded in 1895, Carnegie Museum of Natural History of Pittsburgh
ranks among the six largest natural history museums in the
United States, with more than 20 million specimens, objects
and artifacts. The museum is the world's third-largest repository
of dinosaur fossils and contains one of the world's greatest
collections of publicly displayed dinosaur skeletons, as well
as one of the foremost collections of gems and minerals. The
museum is a distinguished research institution and a dynamic,
family-friendly destination.
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