Martin Selg purchased the old Federal Reserve Building and has proposed some very big changes, including adding a 48-story housing & office tower on top of the preexisting landmark.
He's not done adding things, however, as PSBJ is reporting that Selig has purchased "Adam and Eve," a sculpture duo by Fernando Botero. The Rubenesque man and woman bronzed statues stand 12.5-feet high and have made their way around the world.
While not the same exact Adam (there are at least two), it is nearly identical to the Adam statue located in the lobby at Time Warner Center in Manhattan. That Adam made the rounds on the Internet when it was revealed that so many people were touching and rubbing his penis that it's color has worn down from dark brown to a light gold.
No word on the state of Seattle's Adam's genitals just yet.
Perhaps unrelated, perhaps not, Selig has decided to seperate Adam & Eve when they arrive in Seattle. Only Adam will be displayed on Second Avenue at Madison Street on a pedastal. Eve will be featured elsewhere, though Selig has declined to say where. The real estate developer is an avid art collector in his own right.
Just in case you wanted to get a sense of how rich Martin Selig is, he told PSBJ that he purchased the sculptures a little more than a month ago and that "How much i paid for it I forgot."
· Selig plans to install big, provocative sculpture at site in downtown Seattle [PSBJ]
· An Attention-Getter, Irresistibly Interactive [NYT] · Proposed Tower Atop Old Federal Reserve Building Gets Bigger [CS] · All Federal Reserve Building coverage [CS]