Santa Claus

The artwork Santa Claus, created by Paul McCarthy, sparked a lengthy debate among the residents of Rotterdam. The artist fashioned a Santa Claus figure holding a Christmas tree, but it appeared to resemble an anal toy.

Many people found it unpleasant and vulgar. In an interview, Paul McCarthy explained that the idea emerged when he had a small figurine and an anal toy in his room, both given to him as a joke by friends. The two objects happened to be placed together on his bedside table and became a source of inspiration.

The artwork cost 180,000 Euros, relatively affordable considering the artist’s prominence. Originally, it was intended to be displayed outside the De Doelen concert hall. However, due to criticism, it was relocated to the Boijmans Van Beuningen Museum in 2005. It remained there until the museum underwent renovations in 2008.

Paul McCarthy’s Santa Claus in Rotterdam

There were later attempts to place it in the shopping zone of Koopgoot, but the area owners declined to have the sculpture near their establishments.

Finally, it found its current home in Eendrachtsplein Square. According to the artist, the artwork symbolizes today’s consumer-driven society, where the desire for possessions is ever-present. Christmas is a time when people spend extra money on gifts for others and themselves.

Santa Claus is one of seventeen sculptures that have been placed along a route stretching about one kilometer, from the beginning of Westersingel to Westzeedijk.

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