The Big Egg Hunt
Last week the Fabergé Big Egg Hunt started here in New York and it's kind of touristy, kind of for children and kind of totally my jam. There are more than 250 egg sculptures "hidden" around the city, each done by a different artist. Once ten people "crack" an egg (via the app) it appears on an egg map — you can only crack eggs by scanning the QR codes on their stands or via the app if you're within a certain distance.
The variety of the different eggs (and the fact that they're all a common shape) reminds me of the Cow Parade, which was going on when I first came to the city 14 years ago. 14-year-old me was kind of obsessed with those cows at the time (even if they seem super tacky now) but that extra dose of nostalgia makes me enjoy the egg hunt even more.
I'm not taking it super seriously because there's no way I'd ever be able to see all of them, but this weekend the weather was beautiful and any reason to walk around the city is a good one. So far I've "cracked" eggs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Madison Ave. and the Upper East Side, Rockefeller Center, Little Italy, Soho, the Flatiron District, the East Village and Grand Central Terminal.
I've been trying to capture the eggs with some hint to their location, especially when they're in front of a recognizable (and eternally photogenic) landmark like the Empire State Building or the Flatiron. It shouldn't be a surprise that I like the New York-themed ones, and I have a few on my list of must-sees that I haven't found yet like the Statue of Liberty-esque one, the one made from street signs and the one covered in pennies.
To my delight, I discovered that I was close to Martha Stewart's egg on Saturday, but it was inside of an antique store that had closed by the time I arrived, so I couldn't get a good photo of it. Surprisingly, it wasn't my favorite of all the eggs I've seen — I like the ones that are little statues, like Humpty Dumpty or the Ralph Lauren Cowboy. My two favorites so far, however, have been the neon one from Stamberg Aferiat/Tsang + Vilanova and Chris Carnabuci's 3D Aphrodite (which is so perfect for the Met).
It's fun to happen upon a egg in the wild without specifically seeking it out, and unlike the cows (which seemed to be around forever) they're only on display for a few weeks before they're auctioned off for charity (current highest bid: $95,000 for the Jeff Koons gazing ball/seal walrus egg, on display in Rockefeller Plaza).
It's kind of fun to watch people go a little crazy when they find an egg (and I will never not enjoy watching people take photos with iPads) but I'm trying not to feel kind of embarrassed to be participating as a 28-year-old New Yorker because it is fun and silly and a little ridiculous — which, like I said, is totally my kind of thing.