Jacksonville Is Building An $18 Million ‘Derp’ Sculpture Right In The Middle Of Downtown

Jacksonville Fla

Getty Image

  • The City of Jacksonville is spending a lot of money on a new riverfront stature.
  • It looks nothing like it is supposed to and we have a few suggestions.
  • Click HERE for more!

Alright, the title here may have been a little bit misleading. Jacksonville is not building a ‘Derp’ statue in the middle of downtown. But it’s also not not building a ‘Derp’ statue in the middle of downtown.

Let’s dig deeper.

Earlier this week, the city of Jacksonville, Fla. announced a redevelopment of the ‘Jacksonville Landing.’ A design firm called Perkins & Will was picked to completely overhaul the riverfront plaza with a beer garden, a hotel, a play area and a sculpture.

There will also be a river terrace, a pavilion, a sky garden, and a pedestrian/bike path. It looks and sounds really nice!

Jacksonville Landing redevelopment design

Perkins & Will / City of Jacksonville

However, there is one big problem— the sculpture.

It is designed to be a piece similar to that of ‘The Bean’ in Chicago, and other similar destination sculptures. An exclamation mark on the city, if you will.

“I think the inclusion of that monumental piece of art really threw Perkins and Will over the top,” said Lori Boyer, CEO of Jacksonville’s Downtown Investment Authority. “Love it or hate it, the public art piece shown in the Perkins and Will design has received a tremendous amount of public comment, which I think really indicates its iconic nature in the sense that you see it, you know it’s there, people are talking about it.”

There is no doubt that people are talking about it, but for all of the wrong reasons.

Open for interpretation:

The 150-foot sculpture is going to cost between $11-18 million. For starters, that seems like a LOT for a sculpture.

I also know nothing about sculpture cost. Whether it is reasonably priced or not, in this instance, it is a total waste.

The sculpture is supposed to read “Jax,” as in Jacksonville. Right?

Well, it does read “Jax” if you squint really hard but it definitely doesn’t read “Jax” to the common eye. Take a look:

Jacksonville Landing redevelopment design

Perkins & Will / City of Jacksonville

Jacksonville Landing redevelopment design

Perkins & Will / City of Jacksonville

There are a lot of alternative suggestions for what the sculpture really is, because it’s definitely not “Jax.” Here are a few, conjured up by the team here at BroBible:

  • “derp” — this is the most straight-forward answer. The “J” looks like a “d,” the weirdly-designed a looks like an “e,” the connection between the “a” and the “x” looks like an “r,” and the “x” looks like a “p.” Once you see “derp,” you can’t unsee it.
  • “lex” — this is the closest answer. The “J” looks like an “l,” the a looks like an “e.” The “x” is there, at least, enough.
    • This could also be interpreted as Lex Luther’s signature if he were a doctor, who have notoriously bad handwriting.
  • “larp” — could this be an ode to live action role play?
  • “sex” — perhaps the city of Jacksonville is very pro-cunnilingus.
  • Have a look at this one: the “J” is rather phallic, the “a” resembles a candy heart, and the “x” is an infinity symbol.

Regardless of interpretation, the city of Jacksonville really blew this one. Whatever you think it might read, we can all agree that “Jax” is the least likely answer, yes?

Grayson Weir BroBible editor avatar
Senior Editor at BroBible covering all five major sports and every niche sport imaginable, found primarily in the college space. I don't drink coffee, I wake up jacked.