I Thought It Was a Sculpture (9 Photos)

October 24, 2026

By Vidar

Every one of these is a real building

A duck farmer built a duck you can walk into. A basket maker put seven floors of offices inside a picnic basket. Each one has a front door, and most still let you in. They were built to get noticed, and to sell shoes, gas, coffee or pineapples.

🐕 The Big Dog — Tirau, New Zealand 🇳🇿

Corrugated iron from ears to tongue. The dog was finished in July 1998 as a volunteer project led by Henry Clothier, with his son Stephen, an engineer, coordinating the build. It houses the information center in Tirau, next to a corrugated iron sheep with a wool and craft shop inside.

💡 Dog Fact: Stephen first used his own bull terrier as the model, but it didn’t look enough like a sheepdog, New Zealand Geographic reports.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsThe Big DogTīrauCorrugated iron (council)July 1998 (NZ Geographic)1According to the council, the dog houses an information centre and public toilets.southwaikato.govt.nz2According to New Zealand Geographic, the dog was designed to complement the neighbouring giant sheep.nzgeo.com1998JulCompletion reported retrospectively by New Zealand Geographic.2004NovNovember–December magazine issue explains the construction.20079 MarPeter Gill photographs the corrugated dog.20263 JulRNZ report announces a proposed auction of the property.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Peter Gill / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0), color adjusted

🍍 The Big Pineapple — Woombye, Queensland, Australia 🇦🇺

Look at the people at the bottom for scale. Bill and Lyn Taylor opened their plantation with this 16-meter fiberglass pineapple on August 15, 1971. It is heritage-listed now, and in Woombye you can climb up inside it to a lookout at the top.

💡 Royal Fact: When Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited in 1983, more than 10,000 people came to see them, the State Library of Queensland writes.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsThe Big PineappleWoombye, Queensland16 metres (owner)Fibreglass (owner)1The State Library dates the opening of Sunshine Plantation to August 1971.slq.qld.gov.au2According to the attraction’s history, the giant pineapple is made of fibreglass.bigpineapple.com.au197115 AugOfficial opening, documented in the State Library history.1976Clare Sheldon's photograph reproduced by the State Library.200515 AprMoondyne's photograph; date recorded in EXIF metadata.202411 JunSite, cafe and restored exterior reopened; interior tours still awaited renovation.202628 MarState Library publishes its illustrated history.Read the full file →

📷 Photo and cover crop: Moondyne / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

🧺 The Basket Building — Newark, Ohio, USA 🇺🇸

Two handles on the roof and a woven pattern on all four sides. The basket maker Longaberger opened it in 1997 as its headquarters, at a cost of $30 million. The building in Newark now stands empty and is for sale, but the owner only wants a buyer who keeps it a basket.

💡 Winter Fact: The handles have a heating element inside to keep ice from forming and possibly crashing through the roof, according to Roadtrippers.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsLongaberger Basket BuildingNewark, Ohio7 stories (Heritage Ohio)1997 (Roadtrippers)1According to Roadtrippers, the building enlarges Longaberger’s Medium Market Basket design.roadtrippers.com2According to Roadtrippers, the handles have heating to prevent ice buildup.roadtrippers.com1997Employees move into the basket headquarters; retrospective report.201125 OctNiagara66 photographs the building.2017DecSale to developer Steve Coon; retrospective report.202323 AugRoadtrippers reports on reuse proposals.202610 JulProperty offered for sale.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Niagara66 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

🐘 Lucy the Elephant — Margate City, New Jersey, USA 🇺🇸

A howdah on her back and windows in her sides. James V. Lafferty had this 65-foot wooden elephant, covered in tin sheeting, built in 1881 for a reported $25,000. Since then she has been a restaurant, an office, a cottage and a tavern, and today you can tour the inside in Margate City.

💡 Patent Fact: Lafferty patented the idea in 1882. The patent says the building could just as well take the form of “a fish, fowl, etc.”

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsLucy the ElephantMargate City, New Jersey65 feet (Lucy history)1881 (Lucy history)1Reportedly built in 1881 to help Lafferty sell his coastal land.preservationnj.org2According to Preservation NJ, spiral stairs in the rear legs lead into the building.preservationnj.org1881Built as Elephant Bazaar; retrospective official history.1970Donated and moved for preservation.1974Reopened after restoration.201415 AugMichael P. Barbella's exterior photograph.20255 DecPreservation NJ examines Lucy's restoration.202629 JunNJ Mom reports tours operating.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Michael P. Barbella / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

🐶 Dog Bark Park Inn — By Dennis Sullivan and Frances Conklin in Cottonwood, Idaho, USA 🇺🇸

The bedroom was in the belly and the loft was in the head. Chainsaw artists Dennis Sullivan and Frances Conklin opened the beagle as a guesthouse in 2003. They stopped taking guests in 2024 and retired in 2025, but the dog still stands beside the highway in Cottonwood, with a small museum open now and then.

💡 Beagle Fact: The big beagle is named Sweet Willy, and the smaller one beside him, Toby, came first: Sullivan and Conklin built Toby in the late 1990s, according to Mental Floss.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsDog Bark Park Inn (Sweet Willy)Cottonwood, IdahoSweet Willy (SPACES)2003 (SPACES)1According to SPACES, Sweet Willy contains a loft inside the dog’s head.spacesarchives.org2According to SPACES, the smaller beagle sculpture beside the inn is called Toby.spacesarchives.org2003AugInn opens; recorded in SPACES' later account.200915 MayGraystock photographs Sweet Willy.2014Jo Farb Hernández documents the site for SPACES.202424 OctIdaho Commerce announces the artists' award.202520 AprOwners confirm closure and retention of the roadside attraction.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Graystock / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

🦆 The Big Duck — Flanders, New York, USA 🇺🇸

Martin Maurer had it built in 1931, with help from a local carpenter and Broadway set designers. It is 20 feet of ferrocement over a wooden frame, and in Flanders there is a souvenir shop inside. Architects later borrowed the name: a building shaped like what it sells is called a “duck.”

💡 Duck Fact: The eyes are tail lights from a Ford Model T, according to Northforker.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsThe Big DuckFlanders, New York20 feet (Suffolk County)1931 (Suffolk County)1According to Suffolk County, the Maurers commissioned the shop to sell their Pekin ducks.suffolkcountyny.gov2According to Suffolk County, Model T taillights supplied the eyes.suffolkcountyny.gov1931Duck shop built in Riverhead; county retrospective.1936Moved to Flanders; county retrospective.20182 AugMike Peel photographs the Big Duck.20261 OctBirthday event announced for the Flanders ranch.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Mike Peel / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

👞 Haines Shoe House — Hellam Township, Pennsylvania, USA 🇺🇸

Windows in the heel, a front door under a little porch, and laces you have to imagine. Shoe salesman Mahlon N. Haines built it in 1948 to promote his shoe stores: 25 feet high and 48 feet long, stucco over a wood frame. Today the boot near York is rented out as an Airbnb.

💡 Shoe Fact: The bedrooms are called the Shoelace Space, the Instep Suite and the Ankle Abode, according to the York Daily Record.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsHaines Shoe HouseHellam Township, Pennsylvania48 feet long (owner)3 bedrooms (owner)1According to the owner, Haines built the guest house to promote his shoe-store chain.hainesshoehouse.com2A July 1949 advertisement thanked the businesses that built the Shoe House.yorkblog.com194922 JulHaines's completion advertisement, reproduced by YorksPast.201313 AugYorksPast publishes its builder-history article.201820 AprPLBthetoonist photographs the Shoe House.202230 DecThe Inquirer reports the new overnight rental.202321 NovABC Localish reports the rental in Hellam Township.Read the full file →

📷 Photo and cover crop: PLBthetoonist / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

🫖 Teapot Dome Service Station — By Jack Ainsworth in Zillah, Washington, USA 🇺🇸

A gas station shaped like a teapot, and a political joke. Jack Ainsworth built it in 1922 as a jab at the Teapot Dome bribery scandal of the Harding years. It sold gas until 2004 and now serves as the visitor center in Zillah.

💡 Bad Luck Fact: Five days before it was moved to make room for a new interstate in 1978, a car crashed into it, and the teapot had to be repaired, the City of Zillah says.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsTeapot Dome Service StationZillah, Washington1922 (City of Zillah)2012 move (City of Zillah)1According to the city, Ainsworth’s teapot design refers to the Teapot Dome oil scandal.cityofzillah.us2According to the city, the restored teapot moved to 117 First Avenue in 2012.cityofzillah.us1922Built by Ainsworth; city retrospective.1978Rebuilt and relocated after road construction and collision damage.2007Placed on the Washington Trust endangered list.200916 AugNed Wilson photograph, before the final move.2012Moved into Teapot Dome Memorial Park.202522 JulChamber visitor page updated; describes tours and souvenirs.20265 JanChamber directory page updated; lists the visitor centre.Read the full file →

📷 Photo: Ned Wilson / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

☕ Bob’s Java Jive — Tacoma, Washington, USA 🇺🇸

About 25 feet of coffee pot, with a bar inside. Veterinarian Otis G. Button built it in 1927 as the Coffee Pot Restaurant, and local artist Bert Smyser designed it. Today the pot in Tacoma is a karaoke and live-music bar, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.

💡 Monkey Fact: When the bar was a Polynesian-themed dance club, it kept two macaque monkeys named Java and Jive, a mother and daughter, according to South Sound Magazine.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsBob's Java JiveTacoma, Washington25 feet (SouthSoundTalk)1927 (SouthSoundTalk)1According to SouthSoundTalk, concrete sections were made off-site and assembled into the coffee pot.southsoundtalk.com2According to KNKX, Bob and Lylabell Radonich converted the building into a nightclub after buying it in 1955.knkx.org1927Coffee Pot Restaurant built; retrospective histories.1955Radonich purchase and nightclub conversion; KNKX retrospective.2014National Register listing reported by SouthSoundTalk.201523 AprSouthSoundTalk documents the bar and its history.201812 MayGabboT photographs the exterior.20243 JanKNKX reports on jazz nights and building improvements.Read the full file →