Review

"Basszilla", Fiberglass.

Steve O'Hora
Basszilla

12 a.m.-11:59 p.m.

Art in R Park
Roe Blvd at Johnson Drive
Roeland Park, KS

Hours: 24 hours
Runs through: Sept. 30

Art in R Park site: http://www.roelandpark.net/art-in-r-park.html

The big field on the southwest corner of Johnson Drive and Roe Boulevard tends to swallow up any art placed there. It's perfect for Steve O'Hora's Basszilla, though -- especially in this weather.

Depending on how much rain as northeast Johnson County got overnight, the huge fiberglass fish just might be king of its own shallow pond. If it is, don't be afraid to slog out for a close inspection. Even from a few feet away, O'Hora's work -- except for a patch near the right pectoral fin -- is strikingly lifelike.

Basszilla is the second piece in a series that grew out of ... well, a prank, really.

A few years ago, while visiting his hometown of Waterloo, New York, O'Hora and his brother -- inspired by the $500 grand prize in a carp fishing contest -- went into the workshop and emerged with a 100-pound fake.

The end result, O'Hora writes, was a carp so realistic that it fooled even the most seasoned of anglers.

It was strictly a gag entry -- but O'Hora was, pardon the expression, hooked by public reaction to the faux fish he dubbed King Carp.

He created Basszilla in 2007, at his workshop in Bates City; this is its first public display, although it has drawn plenty of spectators to O'Hora's driveway.

There's not much you can say in Artspeak about this sculpture. Why try?It's ... just a ginormous fiberglass bass. An extremely realistic ginormous fiberglass bass.

(The four large foam cattails are a nice touch. Mounting the sculpture against a giant taxidermy board would have made it look like a Bigmouth Billy Bass ... although an extremely realistic ginormous singing fiberglass bass would be ten kinds of cool, wouldn't it?)

Don't try to analyze this piece of art. It's okay to simply have fun with it. O'Hora clearly did.

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