The Pink Flamingo |
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The Pink Flamingo
Reiman’s Pick
For the week of July 19,, 2010
Louis Hilgemann, Outdoor Horticulture Intern
Reiman Gardens, Iowa State University
It was nearly a decade after the end of World War II and spirits were high in America. Home ownership was skyrocketing as people were moving out to the suburbs to start a family. People now had the time and money for vacations, and Florida was a main destination. It was here in the sunshine state that the plastic flamingo was born.
First introduced in 1952 by Union Plastics, the lawn flamingo was not an initial success for the Massachusetts company. They asked Don Featherstone to redesign the flamingo in 1956 after multiple versions didn’t sell. Featherstone studied National Geographic photos and sculpted two clay flamingos. Union Plastics bought the molds and pumped out millions of these plastic flamingos in the late 1950’s early 1960’s.
The environmental movement of the 1970’s resulted in flamingo’s popularity to plummet only to be revived in the 1980’s retro/nostalgia trends and the hit television show “Miami Vice”. Rising oil prices, raw materials, electricity, and other production costs took a toll on Union Pacific, eventually causing this company to close down.
Today a company in New York is manufacturing pink plastic flamingos from the original Featherstone mold. With many imitations out there, the original can be easily identified by Featherstone’s signature on the flamingo’s backside. Come see dozens of these original Featherstone flamingos congregating the Pattern Garden’s “Flamingotorium”.
Jul 23, 2010 2:09 PM
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