6. Ugo Rondinone, Human Nature (2013)

Ugo Rondinone, Human Nature, Rockefeller Center, 2013. Photograph by Bart Barlow. Image courtesy the Public Art Fund

In 2013, Swiss-born and New York-based artist, Ugo Rondinone, created a series of nine colossal stone figures for Rockefeller Center. The piece, entitled Human Nature, was displayed along the full length of the plaza, between 49th and 50 Streets.

To put the immensity of the work into context, each sculpture ranged in height from 16 to 20 feet and weighed up to 30,000 pounds. Described as “ancient sentries,” the individual figures were crafted using slabs of bluestone, which were taken from a quarry in Northern Pennsylvania. Although they stood fixed in place, the sculptures represented a different human emotion (Sad, Calm, Ecstatic…) and viewers were able to walk between their legs.