A tiny shiny mountain reminding me the most beautiful part of our province, the majestic Rocky Mountains. A beckon of brilliance in a sometimes dreary city. It shines of hope, hope for the future of where our city is going. To be bold enough to state that it not just Chicago, New York or Barcelona that is deserving of kooky, large scale installation art works. No, we are too. Just because we are small, we are north, we are cold, and yes we are the City Of Champions where hockey is religion, does not mean that we should be void of art or the arts. I applaud those involved for having the balls (pun intended, ha ha) to have brought this piece to Edmonton and to place it in the River Valley, not downtown. For there is more to see and do in Edmonton then within a 24 block radius. On my daily drive down the Whytemud I look forward to seeing the big shiny balls. Yes they are funny, they make me smile, they brighten my day, every day. They start conversation, create conflict and debate. They make us interact verbally with each other on their merit... They, well they do exactly what art is supposed to do. So to me they are worth every penny and are deserving of 5 glorious stars. read more

Talus Dome - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Edmonton, Alberta

I get that art can be controversial. I get that not every piece of art is for everyone. My beef with the Talus Dome isn't about the sculpture itself. Sure I think it's a bit silly looking, but whatever. My opinion doesn't determine what's good art and what's bad art. And I don't know what it represents or what, but I could put out some general guesses, like snow, or mountains or the juxtaposition of Edmonton's blue collar roots and art culture, or whatever. How I feel and what I think about this piece isn't the issue. My problem with the Talus Dome is the placement. Why would anyone think it is a smart move to place a piece of giant, and distracting public art on the Quesnell Bridge on one of the busiest roads in Edmonton. Texting, applying making, playing candy crush, aren't these forms of distracted driving? Well yes, but we can also add the Talus Dome, a giant piece of blinding art to this list. The silver balls on this sculpture are reflective, so depending on when you're driving and where you're looking you'll need to shield your eyes. It's distracting and it's dangerous for drivers and pedestrians. I wonder how many people have said, ''but officer I couldn't help it, that shiny silver thing was distracting me." The placement of the art isn't good for either drivers on the Whitemud or pedestrians in the River Valley. There isn't any kind of place where you can stop and look at this piece of art as a driver. You can't exactly stop on the Whitemud...unless it's rush hour (Thank You! I'm Here All Night). You can drive down to Fox Drive where you can see the full statue, but again not really a good place to stop unless you park under the overpass. And then if you do, you still need to cross Fox Drive to stand on an overpass embankment to look at some silver balls. What? Look I'm not okay with damaging public art, as someone did recently. It just means that the art will need to be repaired, at a cost to the taxpayers. But maybe that vandalism is a sign, not that we should get rid of public art, but that we should move it to a place where it can be enjoy by people, and not be distracting to drivers, which is dangerous for everyone. Public Art is for the people right? So let's move this sculpture to a place where it can be enjoyed by people without being dangerous. It's either that or we need to start putting outrageous and weird art sculptures on every overpass and bridge in Edmonton, so it won't just be the Whitemud and Quesnell Bridge with distracting art. Then it'll just be visitors who are distracted by shiny silver balls and my next proposal for badly placed public art in Edmonton; a giant statue of Wolverine on the Anthony Henday overpass at Gateway Boulevard. read more

While I wholeheartedly approve of having art in our city the Talus Dome just isn't something I can get behind. First off I don't understand the logic behind the placement of this installation. The Whitemud is a place where you and your fellow motorists should be devoting one hundred percent attention to the road and not glancing off to the side to take in this eyesore. Secondly if you're going to have art why not have it reflect the spirit of our city? We have so many things that deserve to be celebrated like our beautiful river valley or our amazing festivals so why put something up that people often confuse as a leftover pile of materials from a construction project? Finally the money they spend on maintaining this is money in my opinion could be better used in other area's. We have a transit system that can't keep up with the population growth and several local police detachments that are closing their doors due to a lack of funding so why on earth are we spending money on polishing a giant mound of shiny silver balls!? read more

Balls. Balls balls balls. OK, I think I've got it out of my system now. I think this thing could be considered a traffic hazard. The first time I drove past I nearly crashed my car because I was so distracted. Then again, I'm pretty sure I was a magpie in a past life and I'm unusually distractable by shiny things. I like the idea of public art. (Can I let you in on a secret? I first wrote that as "pubic art." Thank goodness I proofread these things before I publish.) Nay, love the idea of public art. (Why can't I type?!) But when it costs more than a half million dollars and it's not even from a local artist, I support it much less. I think it's great that these piece has created so much conversation, because that's what art should do. But next time I would like to see a locally-made piece with a smaller budget located on a less dangerous bridge. ...BALLS. read more

Every time I drive by these pile of balls, my 10 year old says "tell me again mom, why are there balls there?". And every time, I have to explain that they are supposed to look good. "But, they are balls mom. What looks good? I don't get it" Well, I don't get it either. There is art, to brighten our city, and then there are balls. Shinny ones. read more

I can't believe (but can, sadly) how low a rating the Talus Dome has received. It's clearly a five-star art piece. The Talus Dome has been the focus of so much resentment from Edmontonians, but I highly recommend walking up and visiting it with an open mind. It's a photography wonderland, if you're into that sort of thing. Seeing your reflection peering back at you from so many directions is what this piece is all about. Don't listen to the haters. The Talus Dome is amazing and we are lucky to have it. read more

Call me crazy, but I kind of like this piece of artwork. Maybe because of the uniqueness or that it consists of a thousand big, silver, metal balls. Did I mention it's shiny too? Sitting very majestically on a lopsided hill by the Quesnell Bridge, I really had to think on what the meaning of this sculpture is. Reflecting on nature? A nice mirror to look at? Or the ultimate weapon to distract drivers? You tell me. I know that it is a city policy to devote 1% of a major project's budget to public art and fully support the idea but maybe in the future get a local artist to do the piece, just like the two giant legs at Southgate LRT. I'm pretty sure it hasn't caused any major accidents yet (aside from a few crows dive bombing to them) but I agree the art piece is not in the best location due to the reflectivity of the shiny balls and that the only people that will most likely see the Talus Dome are joggers and vehicles driving up the exit ramp. read more

I have to say... I don't get it. I like the idea of public art, and I want to support adding more art to Edmonton. My biggest gripe is, this work doesn't speak to me. I'm having a tough time trying to imagine its message and/or symbolism. Is it trying to say Edmonton is in a perpetual state of construction? Art should enthrall and provoke. It should deliver a pointed statement or invoke emotion. Whimsy has a place, but wouldn't it have been far more engaging to design a piece that speaks to Edmonton's unique identity and rally's us as a people? Just off the top of my head, why not a piece symbolizing Edmonton's identity as a festival city, or a piece depicting Edmonton's generous balance of city and nature? Why go with balls? read more

So many Talus Dome haters around here. Art is so subjective that not everyone is going to like the same piece of art. This one seems to get its fair share of detractors though! I for one think it is a pretty cool piece. I think the location may not be the best for it though. It is the type of piece that I think would best be served in a more public space where people can see and touch it. Maybe where you get great reflections of downtown buildings on the spheres. I bet it would have been more well received in a another area. Price always seems astronomical for these pieces of public art. Are they worth the money? I believe we should have public art but public funds should be spent wisely as well. Here is a great article on the crazy silver balls! http://blogs.edmontonjournal.com/2011/11/15/meet-the-talus-dome-the-most-expensive-the-most-exposed-and-the-best-public-sculpture-in-the-history-of-edmonton/ Haters gonna hate! But art is art, enjoy life people. Oh and City Council please spend our money wisely. We put our trust in you. read more

I really don't know why this thing is placed where it is. Sure, it looks kind of cool (in the way that a pile of liquid metal rabbit turds looks cool) but it is in such a useless place. You really only see it on the northbound Whitemud Dr exit off Fox Dr. You sort of see it for a split second going northbound on Whitemud Dr before the Quesnell Bridge. You don't really see it going southbound on Whitemud Dr. I'm all for quirky public art and I understand the City has to allocate some money for public art for every major infrastructure project they have but why not have it by the large retaining walls north of the bridge or have the retaining walls painted? That makes a lot more sense to me. read more

Really? Big silver balls? What is this thing? At first, it appeared as though it was a leftover something or other from all the construction on the Quesnell Bridge. Except when construction was done, the balls didn't leave. Now they're still there, glinting silverly in the sun. Reading up about it, the concept of the Talus Dome I like. Meant to reflect everything around it, it's its own mirror reflecting what's happening around it. But it'd be cooler if each of the spheres also had cameras in them and were actually recording what was going on in the area, then time elapsing it all onto the web somewhere. For that, I would give the big hard shiny balls a 5 star. As it is, it's art that I only partially understand. And so until the time that I walk by it, or stand in front of it and catch that one moment where it all becomes clear as to WHY this big pile of steelies is significant and why a resting place beside the Quesnell Bridge is the best place for it, it remains a bit of a head scratcher and a 3-star monument. Although if I'm the artist reading this reading, I'm thinking to myself: "Ha! Made you think!" read more

I've been told I'm not an Edmontonian unless I review this. To be honest, as time passes, I kind of like the bloody thing. I find its design really sort of accentuates the rolling contours of the valley. Don't worry, I want to slap myself for writing that last sentence too. (regardless of veracity) Not from Edmonton? Ignore this entirely. It's nothing special. We like to talk about it due to the bit of a boondoggle that was its commissioning as a work of public art. Don't ask how much it cost. read more

Simply put, this is a piece that you need to walk up to and look at closely to appreciate. It has an undeniable strength and mystery. There is a tension to it, in that it looks like it's about to role into the river. I would like to see more art like this in the city. read more

Whatever this is supposed to be, it looks out of place by the Whitemud Park. It doesn't compliment the natural surroundings at all. The Talus Dome looks like a bunch of alien eggs waiting to hatch. This should be inside of a mall. read more

I'm sorry, but this thing is an epic fail. I still can't believe that this cost our city $600,000. Mandel, are you nuts? I know that art is subjective, but we shouldn't be paying obscene amounts of money for something that anyone can put together. If I were to make a model of the Talus dome by gluing marbles and golf balls together, is it art? I think most people would say probably not. On top of being a really bad eyesore, this thing has been fenced off due to the vandalism (which I completely understand, but don't condone). The next point I wanted to make is location, location, location! I've heard from many friends and classmates that due to its reflective nature, it's in a really poor location. I can't count the number of times that this thing was the cause of near-accidents. I don't approve of the Talus Dome whatsoever, but the location could make a huge difference. Why not put it in a park or something? read more

It's balls. I liked them a lot very mirrored felt so comfy, popped a tit and my boi popped a d. Thanks lovely experience

The Dome, in itself, is just a silly novelty, but here's my problem: There must have been any number of Canadians who could have thought up a pile of silver balls or something equally silly, so why did we have to pay an American an outrageous amount to do this? read more

The *only* thing wrong with Talus Dome is that it isn't big enough. Sadly, it is dwarfed by the Bridge, which is itself included in the U.S. National Geographic Society's book "The Builders" as an example of great and beautiful architecture and engineering -- *before* its rehabilitation. Talus Dome *and* the Quesnell Bridge are pieces of art all Edmontonians should be proud of. read more

It looks like construction material left beside the road, until you get closer..then it looks like someone dumped their Christmas ornaments beside the road. read more