A huge, green, inflatable sculpture on a famous Paris square has raised a storm for its resemblance to a sex toy, with the artist attacked in the street.
U.S. artist Paul McCarthy told French newspaper Le Monde that his work entitled Tree had been inspired both by a sex toy and a Christmas tree.
When he went to see it on Place Vendome, a man slapped his face before running away, the paper says. [BBC]
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The work has drawn the ire of France's far right, which claims it is a national disgrace:
French Spring, a French far-right group opposed to gay marriage, posted a picture of the controversial inflatable on Twitter, adding: "Place Vendome disfigured! Paris humiliated!"
It added: "This is where your tax dollars are going!" [Daily Mail]
If it's any consolation to the French, the phallic installation will come down at some point. America, on the other hand, will always have the Washington Monument.
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