Giant Hands Around the World

Important Note:
This post has been superceded/merged with a fresh post. The new collection  is very exhaustive and contains 200+ hand sculptures till date.

Click here to go the new post.

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This is collection of Giant Hands around the World and contains, till now, following sculptures. (listed in random order).
  1. Hand of Desert, Atacama Desert, Chile.
  2. The Hand (aka Monument to the Drowned) Punta del Este, Uruguay.
  3. Praying Hands, Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA.
  4. The Hand of Harmony, Cape Homi, South Korea.
  5. The Awakening, National Harbour, Prince George's County, Maryland, USA
  6. The Awakening II,  Chesterfield, Missouri, USA
  7. Giant Hand at NuArt Sculpture Park, Bandung, Indonesia.
  8. Giant Hand at Holocaust Memorial, Miami, Florida, USA
  9. Hands & Molecule, Ramsgate, Kent, UK
  10. Giant Hands, Duke Town, Calabar, Nigeria
  11. The Hand (La Mano), Parque Juan Carlos I, Madrid, Spain
  12. The Hand (La Mano), Venice, Italy
  13. Giant Hands of Chandigarh, India
    1. Open Hand Monument, Chandigarh
    2. Open Hand Cut-out, Sukhna Lake, Chandigarh
    3. Open Hand Motif, Sukhna Lake, 
    Chandigarh
More hands will be gradually added in this collection.

1. Hand of Desert
Mano del Desierto (meaning: Hand of Desert) is the third giant hand made by Mario Irarrázabal and is most famous of giant hands created by him. Inaugurated on March 28, 1992, the 11 metres (36 ft) tall sculpture, made of  iron and concrete, is a must stop for the travellers on the desolate Atacama Desert stretch of Pan-American Highway.

As per Wikipedia; "Irarrázabal used the human figure to express emotions like injustice, loneliness, sorrow and torture. Its exaggerated size is said to emphasize human vulnerability and helplessness."


Image from Flickr is by Fernando Mandujano

Image from Flickr is by palegoldenrod

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

Source: Wikipedia

2. Monument to the Drowned
This was first giant hand made by Mario Irarrázabal. On its completion in 1982 Irarrázabal gained worldwide acclaim and made 3 more giant hands including the most famous Hand of Desert (Mano del Desierto) in the Atacama Desert, Chile.

La Mano (The Hand) aka Monumento al Ahogado (Meaning: Monument to the Drowned) is a sculpture of five fingers partially submerged in sand, located at Brava Beach, Punta del Este, Uruguay. The sculpture is made of concrete and plastic with reinforced steel bars, metal mesh, and a degradation-resistant solvent covering the plastic on the outside.

Image from Flickr is by matt.hinsta

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

Source: Wikipedia

3. Praying Hands
60 feet (~18.3 metres) high 'Praying Hands' at the entrance of Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA is reportedly one of the tallest bronze statue in USA.

The statue was made in Juarez, Mexico and was originally called 'The Healing Hands'.

Image from Flickr is by trp0

Image from Flickr is by mulmatsherm

View location  Google Earth  Google Maps

Source of info: roadsideamerica.com

4. The Hand of Harmony
The Hand of Harmony is one of several sculptures on Homigot Beach, the eastern point of South Korea. The rays of the rising sun are first to reach the hands signifying a new beginning for South Korea.

The sculpture made from bronze and granite was built in 1999.

Image from Panoramio is by jeito

Image from Panoramio is by 찌까니

There is another hand at the nearby beach next to the light of millennium. While the hand in the sea depicts a left hand the second on the beach shows a right hand.
Image from Panoramio is by jeito

Credits: I am thankful to jeito for informing about the second hand (shown above) and allowing me to use his images. Thank you jeito.

View location in Google Earth Google Maps

5. The Awakening
The Awakening is a huge artworks depicting a 22 meters long (72 ft) giant embedded in the ground trying to get out.

As per Wikipedia;
"The statue consists of five separate aluminum pieces buried in the ground, giving the impression of a panicked giant trying to pull himself to the surface. The left hand and right foot barely protrude, while the bent left leg and knee jut into the air. The 17-foot right arm and hand reach farther out of the ground, and the bearded face, with the mouth in mid-scream, struggles to emerge from the surrounding earth."

The sculpture unveiled in 1980 is creative work of American artist J. Seward Johnson, Jr. and was originally installed at Hains Point in East Potomac Park, Washington, D.C. In 2009 it was relocated to the present location at National Harbor, Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside the District of Columbia, where it is installed on a specially built beach along the Potomac River.

Because of its huge hand, which is distinctly separate from giant's body, the sculpture has been included in this "Giant Arms Around The World" collection.


Image from Flickr is by IntangibleArts

Image from Flickr is by Mr. T in DC

Image from Flickr is by wfyurasko

Image from Flickr is by thisisbossi

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

6. The Awakening - II, Chesterfield, Missouri
A replica of the original "Awakening" was also unveiled on October 10, 2009 at Chesterfield, Missouri. It was also created by J. Seward Johnson, Jr. The original Awakening is located at National Harbour, Prince George's County, Maryland.

Image from Flickr is by Karen Blaha

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

Source: Wikipedia

7. Giant Hand at NuArt Sculpture Park, Bandung
This giant hand is at the NuArt Sculpture Park, Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. The 3 ha park was opened in Year 2000 and primarily exhibits the works of the sculptor Nyoman Nuarta. No details about the hand are available but it sure look very big.

Image from Flickr is by wanderlass

View location of Sculpture Park in Google Earth / Google Maps. (The sculpture itself is not visible in GE imagery.)

Main source of info: wanderlass.com

8. Giant Hand at Holocaust Memorial, Miami
A giant hand at the Holocaust Memorial at South Miami Beach, Florida. The 12.8 metres (42 ft.) high sculpture set in the middle of a pool, was designed by Kenneth Treister and is centrepiece of the memorial. Cast in bronze, the outstretched hand has several human figures clinging to it and and to each other.

Image from Flickr is by Dennis Goedegebuure

Image from Flickr is by Marjolein Vegers


Main sources of info and more info: Orlando Sentinel and Official Page of Memorial

Credits: I am thankful to David Prashker for informing me about this giant hand at Miami Beach.

9. Hands & Molecule, Ramsgate, Kent
This pair of giant hands holding up strings of molecules called "Hands & Molecule" is located on the Westcliff Promenade, Ramsgate, Kent, UK. It was commissioned by Sustrans (A leading UK charity enabling people to travel by foot, bike or public transport) and sponsored by pharmaceutical company Pfizer.

The 2.4 meters (8 ft) high sculpture was designed by David Barnes, with bronze casting by Livingstone Art Founders and was unveiled in June 2000 to mark the opening of the National Cycle Network (Route 15) in Thanet, Kent.


Image from Flickr is by Alan Day

Image from Flickr is by John Sheldon

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

Source of info: mykent.co.uk / vanderkrogt.net

10. Giant Hands, Duke Town, Calabar, Nigeria
A pair of giant hands located in a park near the Calabar Museum, Duke Town, Nigeria. No information is available about these hands however the Panoramio image (shown below) has referred to these as "Hands of God".

Image from Panoramio is by Adindu

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

11. The Hand, Parque Juan Carlos I, Madrid, Spain
This sculpture made in 1987 was the second giant hand made by Mario Irarrázabal. It is similar to his original sculpture in Punta del Este, Uruguay and shows five fingers partially submerged in the ground. However unlike the original hand at the Brava Beach, Uruguay, where the fingers rise out from the sand on the beach, the fingers here are rise out from paved ground.

Image from Flickr is by Richard Parmiter

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

12. The Hand, Venice, Italy
This is 4th and last giant hand by Mario  Irarrázabal.  was originally installed at the Riva Ca' Di Dio, Castello, for the Venice Biennale in 1995. This sculpture has four stretched out fingers with thumb resting on the ground. Tired tourists often used the thumb as a bench.

Image from Panoramio is by AnnaJolanta 1

The sculpture remained at Riva Ca' Di Dio, at least till November 25, 2007 (Source: Flickr Image) and at some stage thereafter, it was relocated to a parking lot in Marghera, mainland Venice, where it lies neglected without any maintenance. From Google Street View (see below) it looks that it is in shambles and is barely noticeable to passersby. It is understood that the authorities are planning to renovate it and relocate again somewhere else. Source: comune.venezia.it (pdf file in Italian) (English  Translation).


Image source: Google Street View

View current location in Google Earth / Google Street View

13. Giant Hands of Chandigarh, India

Le Corbusier, famous Swiss-French architect, urban planner and one of the pioneers of modern architecture was very enamoured with "Open Hand" symbol. One of his most famous project was the planned city of Chandigarh, India and the city authorities adopted the "Open Hand" as the emblem/symbol of the of Chandigarh. There are several Giant Open Hands scattered in and around Chandigarh. Here are three larger ones.

13.1 Open Hand Monument, Chandigarh
This Open Hand Monument was designed by Le Corbusier himself and is largest of his many Open Hand sculptures. It symbolizes "the hand to give and the hand to take; peace and prosperity, and the unity of mankind".

The Monument located in the Capitol complex of Chandigarh, in the backdrop of the Shivalik mountain range of outer Himalayas, stands 26 metres (85 ft), high out of which the metal hand is 14 metres (46 ft) high and weighs 45 metric tonnes (100,000 lb). The hand is mounted on a swivel and rotates like a vane with the wind.
Image from Flickr is by Shubh Singh
Image from Panoramio is by Fernando Stankuns

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

More info: Wikipedia

13.2 Open Hand Cut-out, Sukhna Lake
Also known as Chandigarh Peace Symbol. Installed on the shores of Lake Sukhna, it was gifted to the city in December 2003, by the Rotary International on 50th year of its founding.
Image from Flickr is by Nitin Badhwar

View location in Google Earth / Google Maps

13.3 Open Hand Motif, Sukhna Lake
Open Hand is a favourite Le Corbusier and symbol of Chandigarh can be found at many places in Chandigarh. Here is a motif of Open Hand built on a shoe shaped islet in the Sukhna Lake, Chandigarh.
Image Source: Google Maps

View location in Google Earth


2 comments:

  1. Why have you not included the extraordinary Holocaust Memorial on South Beach in Miami, Florida? http://holocaustmemorialmiamibeach.org/

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks David for the link to the giant hand at Holocaust Memorial in Miami. I will add it now in the blog post. During my Google searches for Giant hands it didn't appear in the results, hence it was not included.

    ReplyDelete

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