Anish Kapoor’s sculpture Cloud Gate, commonly known as The Bean, in Chicago’s Millennium Park
Anish Kapoor’s sculpture Cloud Gate, popularly known as The Bean, has been the subject of many satirical works and conspiracy theories ever since it was erected in Chicago’s Millennium Park in 2006. One theory, however, gained popularity this past week after demonstrators called for the release of a man who has allegedly been trapped inside the sculpture all this time.
The Man in Bean Coalition alleges (in jest) that at the beginning of construction in 2004, Kapoor kidnapped a child and placed it inside the sculpture itself, supplying air and food through a series of vents. The movement further claims that the sculpture itself is not made from plates of polished stainless steel, but it is, in fact, an enormous one-way mirror. What some are calling the Man in Bean protests have mainly been confined to the Internet, but an in-person protest occurred on July 31st. In videos of the protest, demonstrators could be heard chanting, “We’ll scream, we’ll shout, Anish Kapoor, let him out!” The goal of the Man in Bean Coalition is to secure the release of this unknown person by putting pressure on figures such as Brendan Reilly, alderman for Chicago’s 42nd ward, where Millennium Park is located. Understanding the effort to be a humorous one, Reilly played along. “I am happy to confirm that a man has not been trapped inside ‘Cloud Gate’ (aka ‘the Bean’) for the past 21 years. In fact, the man was freed years ago. Further, we can neither confirm nor deny that Soldier Field is actually a flying saucer secretly relocated from Area 51 back in 2003.” Reilly has also urged the public to refrain from calling his office, as it has proved distracting for his staff.
The Man in Bean Coalition’s campaign has received support from several prominent individuals and organizations. The renowned Chicago pizza chain Lou Malnati’s expressed its support for the coalition’s efforts to release the man from The Bean. The restaurant’s social media accounts have claimed, “There is a man in the Bean. Throughout the years, many of our drivers have delivered to him. He is registered in our system as ‘First name: Man in the, Last name: Bean Please free m’. Unfortunately, our system has a character limit and would not allow him to fill out the rest.” Another supporter of the coalition is British artist Stuart Semple, who for years has taken advantage of every opportunity to poke fun at anything related to Anish Kapoor. Semple has, in years past, created his own line of pigments to protest Kapoor buying the rights to Vantablack, an incredibly dark black paint. He has made other pigments to criticize figures and companies that claim to own specific colors, including Tiffany and Mattel. This is also far from the first time that The Bean has become the center of a joke or work of satire. 2017 in particular saw a slew of events created on Facebook where people sought to dress the sculpture as a ghost for Halloween, roast and brew it into coffee, have it cooked by Guy Fieri, and roll it into Lake Michigan to see if it would float.
Despite Reilly’s answer, the campaign has doubled down on its allegations, encouraging followers to disregard reports from what it calls “Big Bean Media”. While the intent of these joke protests may have been difficult to determine before, it is starting to become clearer. To many, they now seem like a sort of parody of the current political and media ecosystems in the United States, namely the lack of trust between the public, news media, and our political leaders. Regardless of the reassurance given by politicians, the answers they provide to our questions will hardly be satisfactory for some people. But regardless of the organizers’ intent, in a time now where more and more people are taking to the streets to defend the rights and freedoms of themselves and their neighbors, some levity and silliness is most welcome.