Nestled on a grassy area between Eindhoven’s main train station and the Eindhoven University of Technology, a bowling ball appears to knock a strike on bowling pins. This 8.5-meter-tall sculpture is made of fiberglass and plastic and is the result of a proposal from the city to welcome the new millennium with a unique eye-catcher.
Flying Pins is the work of pop artist couple Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, and was erected in 2000. The sculpture cost about 1.1 million euros and was funded by local businesses. Unlike the artists’ other works, this art installation is in the open air.
While there is no plaque to be found near the artwork itself, the artists intended for the sculpture to represent its surroundings. The Kennedylaan is seen to be the perfect place for such a sculpture as the long road depicts a bowling lane. The yellow color of the pins is meant to blend in with the daffodils that bloom alongside the road in the spring. As the birthplace of the tech giants Philips and ASML, the municipality claims that the Flying Pins represent the combination of working and living in a city full of innovation.
