200:, as he was not able to obtain real flamingos to use as models. As time went on, the plastic flamingo became more popular. They appeared across the country and even as parts of various art exhibits. In 1987, Donald Featherstone inscribed his signature in the original plastic mold. This was apparently to help distinguish between original and "knock-off" pink plastic flamingos. Featherstone's signature stayed on the bird until 2001, when it was removed. The signature was quickly replaced because of a small boycott of the unsigned birds.
158:'s art school, in 1957, he was offered a job designing three-dimensional animals for Union Products, Inc. Over his years at Union Products, Featherstone sculpted over 750 different items, the first two of which were a girl with a water can and a boy with a dog. When Featherstone was asked in 1957 to sculpt a duck, he purchased one, which he named Charlie, and later released the bird in
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In
November 2006, Union Products closed and production of the flamingo stopped. Shortly thereafter, a New York company purchased the molds for Featherstone's flamingos and subcontracted production to a Fitchburg company, Cado Products. In 2010, Cado Products purchased the copyrights and plastic molds
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for the pink flamingos and continues to manufacture them. They are generally sold in sets of two—one holding its head erect, nearly three feet (0.91 m) high, the other bending over as if looking for food.
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for his creation of the pink flamingo, and he also began his tenure as president of Union
Products, which he held until he retired in 2000.
162:. Later that year, he was asked to carve a flamingo. The now iconic pink flamingo went on sale in 1958, when the color pink was popular.
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130:(January 25, 1936 – June 22, 2015) was an American artist most widely known for his 1957 creation of the
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at the age of 79. Visitors often leave pink flamingos of their own on the lawn around his grave.
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347:"Don Featherstone, Inventor of the Pink Flamingo (in Plastic), Dies at 79"
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405:"Don Featherstone, creator of pink flamingo lawn ornament, dies at 79"
453:. Atlas Obscura. Published June 16th, 2021. Accessed March 6th, 2023.
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Featherstone based his creation on photographs of flamingos from
424:"Donald Featherstone, plastic pink flamingo creator, dies at 79"
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while working for Union
Products. Featherstone resided in
282:"Pretty in Pink?: Flamingos give color to Leominster"
377:"Original pink flamingo lawn ornament being reborn"
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250:The Original Pink Flamingos: Splendor on the Grass
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319:"Backstory: Extinction of an American icon?"
497:"Retro pink flamingos to hatch in New York"
165:In 1996, Featherstone was awarded the 1996
411:. Sentinel & Enterprise. 22 June 2015.
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172:On June 22, 2015, Featherstone died from
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248:Featherstone, D. and Herzing, T.,
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422:Marquard, Bryan (June 22, 2015).
150:, in 1936 and grew up in nearby
192:as designed by Don Featherstone
561:Deaths from Lewy body dementia
345:Fox, Margalit (23 June 2015).
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531:: "RIP pink plastic flamingo"
324:The Christian Science Monitor
252:, Schiffer Publishing, 1999.
581:Sculptors from Massachusetts
335:Published: November 2, 2006.
154:. After graduating from the
18:Donald Featherstone (artist)
468:Price, Jenny (2006-11-17).
451:“Grave of Don Featherstone”
27:American artist (1936–2015)
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409:Sentinel & Enterprise
317:Collins, Clayton (2006).
146:Featherstone was born in
514:Published: May 31, 2007.
280:Beaudoin, Diane (2007).
148:Worcester, Massachusetts
136:Fitchburg, Massachusetts
79:Fitchburg, Massachusetts
59:Worcester, Massachusetts
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470:"In the Pink No More"
394:Updated June 1, 2007.
225:"Improbable Research"
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132:plastic pink flamingo
156:Worcester Art Museum
486:, November 17, 2006
286:Leominster Champion
198:National Geographic
128:Donald Featherstone
44:Donald Featherstone
586:Ig Nobel laureates
475:The New York Times
351:The New York Times
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174:Lewy body dementia
167:Ig Nobel Art Prize
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96:Notable work
73:(2015-06-22)
551:2015 deaths
546:1936 births
356:10 February
113:– Art Prize
540:Categories
509:2008-04-23
481:2008-04-23
389:2009-05-04
330:2008-04-23
296:2009-04-24
208:References
50:1936-01-25
382:USA Today
142:Biography
90:Sculpture
502:NBC News
435:June 22,
111:Ig Nobel
234:24 June
505:. 2007
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152:Berlin
107:Awards
81:, U.S.
61:, U.S.
115:1996
437:2015
358:2017
254:ISBN
236:2015
68:Died
40:Born
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