Bernard Madoff and The Bull, A Sculpture

by Silicon Valley Blogger on 2009-09-2913

Have you seen what Bernie Madoff has been up to lately? Apparently on the wrong end of a bull! Got this from the BBC News where it describes this photo as follows:

Bernie Madoff and the Bull sculpture

Chinese artist Chen Wenling critiques the global financial crisis in What You See Might Not Be Real, on display at a Beijing gallery. The bull is said to represent Wall Street, while the man pinned to the wall represents jailed financier Bernard Madoff.

Is it bad to feel strangely gratified by this scene? Well, if you’ve been on the wrong end of a Ponzi scheme before, who can blame you?

Now let’s shift gears: I’m going out of town this week so I figured to put together my reading list a little earlier than usual. I’m also a bit distracted given what’s been going on with my family elsewhere, so I’ll leave you with this week’s financial roundup for now. Here’s what I’ve been reading lately!

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{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }

Joel September 29, 2009 at 10:16 pm

I have to say, I love the picture but I am really unsure of what exactly that is blasting out from behind the bull: steam, gas (natural gas from the earth or … natural gas from the bull 🙂 ), or what… 🙂

Silicon Valley Blogger September 29, 2009 at 11:11 pm

Hah! I think it is what it looks like! 🙂

Jeronimo September 30, 2009 at 9:11 am

Very good and funny sculpture, the bull could not stand and had to lie down somewhere. 🙂

Jesse September 30, 2009 at 2:07 pm

Haha that is awesome. I love the detail that was put into the image, with Bernard missing a shoe and to incorporate the whole room into the sculpture, that is real talent.

Great list too, I missed some of these so I have some catching up to do. I also reviewed the book Stingy Scoundrel and am giving a copy away. The contest closes at midnight tonight (9/30) so if anyone else is looking for a copy of the book..

ctreit September 30, 2009 at 5:51 pm

Very funny artwork. It is too bad that only Bernie got pinned like that – as if he had really acted alone. Still, he is a pretty good proxy for what certain sections of Wall Street represent.

Goran Web Design October 1, 2009 at 3:31 am

LOL! That is quite a big work of “art” Lots of BS flying around in that art gallery. Excellent, and a great reflection on the current state of the economy in general, and the Bernie Madoff saga in particular.

Jennifer @ Credit Score Scale October 1, 2009 at 1:29 pm

I saw this on BBC, I didn’t notice the details about the shoe and stuff until I read the comments here and took a closer look, the wall has crack lines and stuff, too. I imagine it’s a lot more impressive in person!

Millionaire Acts October 1, 2009 at 10:14 pm

Nice sculpture! Impressive. I like the idea of the bull with the person pinned dowm. It looks like the bull was launched from a rocket. LOL.

kenyantykoon October 2, 2009 at 1:26 am

i still can’t get my head around as to how this guy burnt through $65 billion. thats like all the money in the world.

John DeFlumeri Jr October 4, 2009 at 12:59 pm

People I heard about want the opportunity to club Madoff with a Louisville Slugger. They believe that the money is gone forever.

Silicon Valley Blogger October 11, 2009 at 6:54 pm

Heh! For more views of this sculpture, including a view that confirms what exactly was happening at the tail end of that bull, check out this thread. There’s more to that sculpture than what you can see in the photo above!

russell solomon March 4, 2011 at 8:52 pm

It is shocking but I love the bull!

Silicon Valley Blogger January 28, 2012 at 10:16 pm

And for other work by the interesting artist named Chen Wenling, check out his “God of Materialism” solo exhibit in 2008.

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