Bruce Lee statue for Bosnian city

[Martino]

Kung-fu legend Bruce Lee is to be honoured with a statue in the war-torn Bosnian city of Mostar. A statue of the action hero is intended to remind people of Lee's "loyalty, friendship, skill and justice".

The city remains ethnically split with Bosnian Muslims, Croats and Serbs divided since the 1992-95 war.

Writer Veselin Gatalo said: "Lee is a true international hero and is a hero to all ethnicities in Bosnia and that's why we picked him."

Gatalo, who came up with the idea, said they planned to erect the statue in Spanish Square, in the centre of the city.

He is an ethnic Croat and said he hopes a statue to Lee will help erase the city's image as a place of ethnic rivalries.

"We want that people, when you say Mostar, respond: 'that's the city that has a monument to Bruce Lee'," Gatalo added.

He hopes to install the statue by November this year and invite Lee's wife, Linda Lee to the opening ceremony.

The four martial arts films Lee made - Fists of Fury (1972), Enter the Dragon, The Chinese Connection and Return of the Dragon (all 1973) - ensured his place in film history.

But he died at the age of 32 from swelling on the brain, before he could witness his rise to fame in the US.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/3620752.stm

[SunWuKong]

i like Bruce Lee and all, but wouldn't some civil rights activist be more appropriate?

[Faithless]

i like Bruce Lee and all, but wouldn't some civil rights activist be more appropriate?
No shit!

I don't think this -- "Lee's 'loyalty, friendship, skill and justice'" is anything that magnificent -- even though he was probably a nice guy and all.

[Martino]

They should put up a statue of a famous Bosnian, like ... oh ... er ...

[hooligan]

There was this article on anime and it talked about how there was Akira cartoons tagged on the walls of cities. Who knows. Bruce Lee did his part. Mandela anyone?

[Martino]

There was this article on anime and it talked about how there was Akira cartoons tagged on the walls of cities. Who knows. Bruce Lee did his part. Mandela anyone?

Oh, sounds a lot better than the ugly scrawl we get daubed on walls in London. I doubt London 'yoof' are up to tagging anime-quality images. I probably wouldn't mind seeing pictures of Kanada and co, just for a change from the British crap squiggles.

But how did this Bosnian city decide on Bruce Lee?!? What's it going to look like? and how big is it going to be? Half-size? Life size? Or something colossal, like the Statue of Liberty?

[thaite]

that's awesome

[Deadpool]

They should put up a statue of a famous Bosnian, like ... oh ... er ...
No way. They should put up someone whos Croat......No Serbian....

[Mr.Lum]

They should put up Bruce Lee. Bow down. One of the greatest stars there ever was.

[Deadpool]

They should put up Bruce Lee. Bow down. One of the greatest stars there ever was.

How about just a generic Chinese dude. You know- to remind all the peoples to give Asians much love and respek.
Booyakasha.
For real.
http://www.biotech.wisc.edu/education/FunFoodStuff/fist.gif

[Faithless]

Been trying to find an English version of a Bosnian newspaper with some sort of commentary on the situation.

Did find this. A supposed translation of a Feral Tribune opinion.

http://www.murmurs.com/talk/showthread.php?t=58163
TOL Wire on 4 September 2003

We Are All Bruce Lee

from Feral Tribune

When the Urban Movement group from Mostar brought up the idea of building a statue of Bruce Lee in the center of the city, the nationalists were disturbed. But the idea's realization has ushered in the beginning
of a new period of civilization for this city that suffered much during the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Out of all the ethnic heroes and those who have a material interest in acting as victims, we have chosen Bruce Lee. Now they can rack their brains trying to decide whether he is he Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim), Croat, or Serb," said Veselin Gatalo, one of the initiators of the idea.

"To be honest, I get sick every time I tell someone I am from Mostar and they ask me whether I am from the east or west side of the city (the city is divided into the Bosniak east side and the Croat west side)," said Nino Raspudic. "That is one of the reasons for building a statue of Bruce Lee. We are hoping that someone in the future will say: 'I know Mostar. That is the city with the Bruce Lee statue.' If we succeed in that, then I can retire."

Raspudic is one if the founders of the non-governmental organization "Urban Movement-Mostar." Of course, he wasn't serious about retirement because he only recently finished his literature studies at Zagreb University and he is only 26. He also said that he has only recently discovered the music of Michael Jackson and Julio Iglesias. But speaking
about the Bruce Lee statue, he is very serious and he has no intention of giving up.

It is difficult to say what made them choose Bruce Lee. Younger generations can't remember the excellent moves of Mostar football player Blaz Sliskovic. Politicians would spend years discussing which ethnicity
poet Aleksa Santic was. The life-size, bronze statue of Bruce Lee won't be placed in front of one of the three movie theatres in Mostar, but
on the former front line of the Bosniak and Bosnian-Croat armies, on the Spanish Square.

"It is like when you have to explain a joke to some people. But we live in times when you have to explain," Gatalo said. "People have gotten so stupid that we have to explain irony. But that is not hard for us." ( ... )

"With this action -- despite all the politicians' interpretations -- we are trying to prove that the existence of a long period of our past lives cannot be settled with ideology and politics."

"Bruce Lee -- as an icon, a man who fought for justice and earned success through his own hard work -- was a very logical choice. He is like a child's dream about a better and world with more justice. ( ... ) We knew that people would ask themselves whether he represents Bosniaks, Croats, or Serbs," Gatalo said.

"The same people will probably do research about what his family was doing during World War II, and who is actually behind this initiative," said Boris Jovanovic, a sculptor and a member of the Urban Movement who has been charged with designing the model for the statue. ( ... )

There have been numerous and varied commentaries in the media regarding
the Bruce Lee initiative. "There is a minority that does not support this action -- the kind of people who take the world and their role in it very
seriously. But generally reactions are positive," Raspudic said. Positive reactions came from the Chinese Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is considering donating 7,500 euros ($8,100) to the cause.

The Mostar City Council finds the idea rather nice, even though there is no doubt that the statue will spark much debate among politicians when they see a statue to "some Chinese guy" in the center of the city and it is clearly not a local nationalist folk singer. ( ... )

The idea to erect a statue of Bruce Lee is not the first provocative idea to come from the Urban Movement. Last year they confused the Mostar public with a photo exhibition called, "Beauties of reconstruction and
building -- 34 pearls of Mostar post-war architecture." In the exhibition they presented 34 of the most showy and spectacular examples of urban 'destruction.' Among them were buildings owned by new tycoons with the
necessary kitsch elements, mosques that would make Saudi Arabia jealous, churches with towers the size of rockets ...

"It is important to stress that this action is not a joke. How can you joke about something so sick? We have a sick state, a sick judicial
system, corrupt police ... Actually, all this came from the Mostar blues," Gatalo said. He said that in a situation in which doctors and
intellectuals earn between 250 and 350 euros in one month, and criminals and other social groups who do not respect the law live like kings, the appearance of Bruce Lee can be only welcomed. Especially for this generation of teenagers who have no role model except those with guns.

"Can you imagine how I feel when in the last two months all am I doing is trying to erect a statue of Bruce Lee -- like he is going to save us?" Raspudic asked.

When we know that institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina are not functioning as the international community would like them to, that the Old Bridge in Mostar, which is supposed to be connecting citizens of the city, has to connect itself first, that politicians in Mostar can't even agree to unite the ethnically segregated communal services, the idea of
putting a statue of Bruce Lee in the center of the city doesn't appear too strange.

Under these conditions, where nationalist politicians are constantly worrying about ethnic interests and parity -- even when the problem is one of fixing potholes in the roads -- the Urban Movement's idea of renaming streets after comic book characters doesn't look less serious.

Maybe the time has finally come for Mostar to allow people like Nino, Veselin, and their friends to declare peace and the true beginning of a civilized era, symbolized by Bruce Lee.

/By Hrvoje Prnjak. Translated by Anes Alic./

[hooligan]

How about just a generic Chinese dude. You know- to remind all the peoples to give Asians much love and respek.
Booyakasha.
For real.
http://www.biotech.wisc.edu/education/FunFoodStuff/fist.gif
maybe europeans find us sexually appealing as well. woo hoo!

[truMp]

wow, bruce lee statue in the middle of bosnia. shocking.

[Cipherous]

I agree with SWK,

I love Bruce and all but i think its kinda inapporiate to symbolize peace with that of a martial arts movie star. Bruce has nothing to do with the Bosnian/Balkan culture.

Vlade Divac and Peja are serbians

[Martino]

I agree with SWK,

I love Bruce and all but i think its kinda inapporiate to symbolize peace with that of a martial arts movie star. Bruce has nothing to do with the Bosnian/Balkan culture.

Vlade Divac and Peja are serbians

Let's hope the sculptor knows Lee and uses the right photo to create the statue. They might end up with a statue of Bolo from Enter the Dragon ....

[Craig]

Bruce has nothing to do with the Bosnian/Balkan culture.I think that's the whole point. He has nothing to do with the culture. People will be forced to focus on the individual and what he stands for. Bruce Lee was a worldwide icon in his time. I know I've had Indian coworkers tell me about watching his movies in the 70s and have heard that many blacks used to look up to him.

Other icons that are more remotely related will be claimed by certain groups to reinforce their viewpoint of cultural superiority. If they pick most individuals related to Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, etc. then either the Serbians, Croatians or Bosnians will make claims of affiliation. Hey this person is Christian or Muslim, ... Hey this person is related to this Christrian denomination, ... Hey, even if this person was an athiest, the people in this individual's country are this type of Christian, etc.

Let us examine somebody famous from history, say, Albert Einstein. If people were to put up a statue of him anywhere, many Jews would be clamoring to his important as a Jew, how he represents the Jewish people, how his important signifies that Jews are more important than Muslims because look at what this Jew did, however, what did any Muslim do, etc. However, even though Einstein was of Jewish descent, he was certainly not a Jewish person from a religious perspective.

[Cipherous]

I think that's the whole point. He has nothing to do with the culture. People will be forced to focus on the individual and what he stands for. Bruce Lee was a worldwide icon in his time. I know I've had Indian coworkers tell me about watching his movies in the 70s and have heard that many blacks used to look up to him.

Other icons that are more remotely related will be claimed by certain groups to reinforce their viewpoint of cultural superiority. If they pick most individuals related to Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, etc. then either the Serbians, Croatians or Bosnians will make claims of affiliation. Hey this person is Christian or Muslim, ... Hey this person is related to this Christrian denomination, ... Hey, even if this person was an athiest, the people in this individual's country are this type of Christian, etc.

Let us examine somebody famous from history, say, Albert Einstein. If people were to put up a statue of him anywhere, many Jews would be clamoring to his important as a Jew, how he represents the Jewish people, how his important signifies that Jews are more important than Muslims because look at what this Jew did, however, what did any Muslim do, etc. However, even though Einstein was of Jewish descent, he was certainly not a Jewish person from a religious perspective.

Good point but I still kinda think Bruce Lee is stil far fetched.

[Faithless]

Some other recent famous statue erectings.

The Dublin City Council of Ireland to erect statue in honour of Thin Lizzy singer, Phil Lynott. (http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/music/story.jsp?story=557837).
A media icon for sure, but at least he's Irelands.

Some citizens in a city in Pennsylvania want to erect a statue in honour of Harriet Tubman (http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/111-08092004-345054.html).
An important figure to African American history, if not American History.

Robert Louis Stevenson might get a statue in Edinburgh Scotland (http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/22135.html)

Yakima erects statue in honour of the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice William Douglas (http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/189264_statue03.html)

Alright, so maybe they don't want to put up a statue in honour of some local, in fear of pissing off many around them. But why not pick a figure with some world wide significance and social prominence?

[raacluse]

Bosnia to build Bruce Lee monument
Thu Sep 2 2004


AP - In Bosnia, where one man's hero is often another man's villain, some citizens have decided to honour a man Serbs, Croats and Muslims can all look up to - kung fu great Bruce Lee.

Lee is best remembered for single-handedly taking on dozens of bad guys in a series of kung fu flicks. But the statue of the Chinese action hero in the ethnically divided city of Mostar is intended to remind people of Lee's lesser known values - "loyalty, friendship, skill and justice," said Veselin Gatalo, a writer who helped come up with the idea.

Lee played in a series of Hong Kong films in the early 1970s that propelled him to stardom first in Asia, then Europe and eventually the United States.

His Hollywood debut came in 1973 with the hugely popular "Enter the Dragon," a box office success Lee never lived to witness. He died a month before the film hit US theatres of a swelling of the brain. He only 32-years-old at the time.

But can a monument to a karate-chopping, high-kicking B-movie star unite Mostar, a town that was both physically and psychologically scarred in Bosnia's 1992-95 war? Even now, Roman Catholic Croats and Muslims still live apart, sending their children to different schools, watching their own television stations and cheering for rival soccer teams.

"Lee is a true international hero and is a hero to all ethnicities in Bosnia and that's why we picked him," Gatalo said.

Bosnia's war killed hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Croats and Muslims and left the country divided into a Serb republic and a Muslim-Croat federation.

In Mostar at least, Gatalo, an ethnic Croat, hopes a statue to Lee will help erase the city's tarnished image as a place of bitter ethnic rivalries.

"We want that people, when you say Mostar, respond: 'that's the city that has a monument to Bruce Lee,"' Gatalo said.

Gatalo and a friend, Nino Raspudic, grew up on Bruce Lee movies. They persuaded Boris Jovanovic, a sculptor from Mostar, to create the statue of Lee "as if he was alive and kicking."

They hope to install the statue by November this year and invite Lee's wife, Linda Lee to the opening ceremony, Gatalo said.

The site picked for the statue is symbolic - the Spanish Square, in the centre of the divided city some 70km south of the capital Sarajevo.

[Hmmm... never thought of Bruce Lee as a "B-movie star", but then maybe that's what he was... if he could be regarded as such, why couldn't someone like John Wayne be similarly classified?]
:confused:

[truMp]

posted already.

[yoMAMA]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051126/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_bosnia_brucelee;_ylt=AlZHQ8v2znFc.sKM0w8I zURvaA8F;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--

apparently he's popular there.

:tongue:

[ahsingjai]

I remember back in high school, there are quite a few bosnians, and I think I remember there was a serbian too and she would never kick it with the bosnians.

[Faithless]

Is it better than the two meter one overlooking Victoria Harbor?

Two meters? Was Bruce that tall?

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41064000/jpg/_41064098_hkstatuegetty203b.jpg

Hong Kong's tribute to Bruce Lee (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4476900.stm)

Last Updated: Monday, 28 November 2005, 01:01 GMT

A statue of martial arts star Bruce has been unveiled in his home town of Hong Kong, 33 years after his death.

Fans raised thousands of dollars to pay for the two metre-high statue, which stands overlooking Victoria Harbour.

It was unveiled in front of hundreds of fans on what would have been the kung fu legend's 65th birthday.

The film star's brother Robert addressed the crowd, some of whom had travelled from abroad, saying: "I think he really deserves this."

He said one of the legacies of his brother was his message of individual expression.

"He always wanted to tell people what a person can do to be able to express himself or herself (to) the fullest," Robert Lee said.

Bruce Lee, who died in 1973 at the age of 32 from swelling of the brain, was born in the US but moved to Hong Kong as a child.

The ceremony comes a day after a similar bronze statue in his honour was unveiled in a city park in Mostar, southern Bosnia.

But Bosnian police said the statue, chosen as a symbol of the fight against ethnic divisions, was vandalised hours after the unveiling ceremony.

"We have received reports that the statue has been damaged," said a police officer in Mostar, quoted by AFP news agency. "We are currently investigating the incident."

The chain and one of the nun chucks' sticks the statue was holding were missing, and empty wine bottles were scattered around the monument, said AFP news agency.

[mr. x]

^--from what I read it's 5'7" right?

[SunWuKong]

the Bosnian statue has already been vandalised a day after it's unveiling. so much for peace.

[Banana]

haha. This is why they can't have nice things.

[Martino]

the Bosnian statue has already been vandalised a day after it's unveiling. so much for peace.

Japanese tourists getting revenge for all those dojos trashed by Bruce Lee (and clones)?

http://www.news24.com/Images/Photos/2005112808540528_bruce_statue.jpg

I don't like it, anyway.

[yoMAMA]

Japanese tourists getting revenge for all those dojos trashed by Bruce Lee (and clones)?

http://www.news24.com/Images/Photos/2005112808540528_bruce_statue.jpg

I don't like it, anyway.

looks like the starwars robot guy.

[Shuriken]

Something that I meant to say a few days ago:

I am extremely proud that it is an Asian American to whom people in the war-torn region of Bosnia turn as a figure of ethnic unity. Bruce himself was an embodiment both of racial unity (his maternal grandfather was Caucasian) and of cultural unity (his popularization of Asian martial arts, and Asian culture in general, upon mainstream American society is difficult to underestimate).

If Bruce can act as a figure of cultural unity in a part of the world where ethnic divisions are so dire, I believe that he can also be more greatly acknowledged as a figure of cultural unity here in the ethnicaly diverse United States.

[SunWuKong]

Something that I meant to say a few days ago:

I am extremely proud that it is an Asian American to whom people in the war-torn region of Bosnia turn as a figure of ethnic unity. Bruce himself was an embodiment both of racial unity (his maternal grandfather was Caucasian) and of cultural unity (his popularization of Asian martial arts, and Asian culture in general, upon mainstream American society is difficult to underestimate).

If Bruce can act as a figure of cultural unity in a part of the world where ethnic divisions are so dire, I believe that he can also be more greatly acknowledged as a figure of cultural unity here in the ethnicaly diverse United States.

you do know that the statue was vandalised in Bosnia within a day that it was unveiled, right?

[Shuriken]

you do know that the statue was vandalised in Bosnia within a day that it was unveiled, right?

The struggle for ethnic unity continues...

[Dei Wong]

i like Bruce Lee and all, but wouldn't some civil rights activist be more appropriate?

Well maybe he is better for human relations. The battles that Bruce Lee went throught just to show it alright for people to interact with one another Bruce Lee hated racism and things that kept people apart. Look how hard he had to fight to bring martial arts to the big screen in a way that was great for everyone. But many see him as just a martial artist but listen to him read his book and you will see why they picked. He used martial arts as a tool to send a message across sky is the same everywhere and people are people and it is alright to interact where race, religion, status. He made Jeet Kun Do formless not only to adapt to any fighting situation. But also to try and shatter some of the beliefs that kept from knowing and learning from one another. Chinese and Japanese martial arts they argue which is best but Bruce Lee would always say we can only fight one way human and styles and things like that sometimes tore people apart. Plus Bruce Lee had numerous friend of many ethnic groups him and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were great and close friends. So was him and Steve Mc Queen. He also wasn't afriad to speak out against racist behavior coming anybody no matter who. I can see why most would think that Bruce Lee only a martial arts actor. Hey I think he is more for a guy influence so many (did you know he taught Chuck Norris and would discuss punching techniques with Muhammad Ali the boxing stance he uses in Jeet Kun Do is Muhammad Ali's stance.)
I don't think he got faction of the credit he deserved. Bruce Lee is a good model for anyone to promote brotherly unity and how to treat others.

[kimpossible]

Bruce Lee seems to mean something more iconic for non-Chinese or non-Asians than he does for Asians/Chinese. Aside from Stephen Chow I'm not aware of much Chinese fandom about him.

Or am I smoking crack? Because this pipe on my table must have come from somewhere.

[SunWuKong]

did you know he taught Chuck Norris

actually i did know that.

the boxing stance he uses in Jeet Kun Do is Muhammad Ali's stance.

actually i don't think that's correct. he danced around like Muhammad Ali in his movies, but correct me if i'm wrong, i think he advocated a very steady and solid stance in Jeet Kune Do itself.

Bruce Lee seems to mean something more iconic for non-Chinese or non-Asians than he does for Asians/Chinese. Aside from Stephen Chow I'm not aware of much Chinese fandom about him.

Or am I smoking crack? Because this pipe on my table must have come from somewhere.

well a lot of Chinese people admire him. but he's just pretty much a part of the culture now as is kungfu. i can understand how non-Chinese people are more vocal about their admiration for him. it's sort of like how academics of Chinese culture talk about Confucianism itself but really it's so secularised that for Chinese people, it's just part of the culture. you don't really think about it or talk about it like it's something unto itself. respect your elders, your teachers, etc etc. that's just what you were taught to do.

(and aside from Stephen Chow, who actually thanked him when he won a best new director award for Shaolin Soccer... LMF also made a very popular song about Bruce Lee.)

[kimpossible]

^But isn't that more localized to Cantonese or even HKers? I've never been exposed to anything either in Taiwan or around Taiwanese that would indicate there's a giant undercurrent of Bruce Lee admiration. I know they know about him and enjoy the movies but I don't think it's a statue-erecting type of love or singling him out for a shining example of Chineseness. Except the one movie where he kicks the shit out of Japanese.

Not like I'm an authority. It's all second hand anecdotal stuff here. It's just an oberservation and and oddity because I really don't know anyone personally who treats Bruce Lee in an iconic manner.

[Dei Wong]

actually i did know that.



actually i don't think that's correct. he danced around like Muhammad Ali in his movies, but correct me if i'm wrong, i think he advocated a very steady and solid stance in Jeet Kune Do itself.



well a lot of Chinese people admire him. but he's just pretty much a part of the culture now as is kungfu. i can understand how non-Chinese people are more vocal about their admiration for him. it's sort of like how academics of Chinese culture talk about Confucianism itself but really it's so secularised that for Chinese people, it's just part of the culture. you don't really think about it or talk about it like it's something unto itself. respect your elders, your teachers, etc etc. that's just what you were taught to do.

(and aside from Stephen Chow, who actually thanked him when he won a best new director award for Shaolin Soccer... LMF also made a very popular song about Bruce Lee.)

He need know Muhammad Ali better than most people think. Its Muhammad Ali unique boxing style was one of the reason he incorporated boxing into the art he was forming jeet kun do he would watch Muhammad Ali's boxing matches. Your right the way he fought in movies is vastly different than how he fought on the street. If you ever watch or take Jeet kun do you just don't square up like a regulars boxer's stance you keep a fluent stance where you can jab, kick and recover at anytime. But at the sametime no one style Jeet Kun Do be the same its not uniform. If some comes up to you and say that not real Jeet Kun Do their crazy because only Bruce Lee can say what real Jeet Kun Do.