Exhibits may come and exhibits may go, artists may come and artists may go, but the statue of Dooley will be on display, well, at least for a very long time.

There are a variety of angles one could take in discussing Emory’s latest installment of school spirit, but the statue is ultimately a piece of art and should get some aesthetic attention.

Matthew Palmer, the sculptor, erected this grand statue with an eye to embodying both the mischievous nature of Emory’s mascot as well as his mystical side.

Palmer certainly succeeded in the mischief, as Dooley is shown apparently descending from the sky casting aside his skeleton suit to reveal — a skeleton.

The statue, placed on the side of Asbury Circle, is delicately crafted and graceful. However, there is more than a hint of macabre about the sculpture. Intense and dynamic, the result is strange.

“I hate it and think it’s a waste of resources and it’s scary. I don’t find it aesthetically pleasing at all,” said Richelle Gossman, College junior.

Surrounded by swirling sheets of metal that are meant to represent an ethereal mist, Dooley appears to sprint from the sky, casting aside not only his suit, but also his eagle-head cane and top hat. Dramatic as the overall appearance is, it leaves the niggling question: How did Dooley manage to remove his clothes to cast them to the ground first while still keeping a hold on his hat and cane?

Also, just where is he going? The torque of the statue continues up through the figure, showing Dooley making a hard right turn, which will lead him hurtling into the anthropology building.

When it gets down to it, the statue is simply out of place. The silver figure looks like a ghoulish Native American Indian with the feather like black scraps swirling around it. The gloomy paint job too makes the statue look gaudy set in the heart of Emory’s marble campus.

“I don’t really know what to say about it, it’s so weird. I think it’s really cool but ... it’s out of place,” said Felicia Long, College sophomore.

“It’s kind of inappropriate ... and it’s in a bad place,” said Sarah Brislin, College junior. “I imagined [Dooley] as more friendly and loveable. It’s an intense skeleton.”

Dooley is around to keep the mortals of Emory well-behaved, but at the end of the day, the grim skeleton is a grisly reminder of mortality. In the future he will become the awkward hub of Wonderful Wednesdays. Juxtaposed against the healthy faced, bustling student base of Emory University, the skeleton looks more like an escapee from a School of Medicine showcase than a vibrant leader.

The Dooley students know and love is the lighthearted figure on campus, the one who dances in front of his own likeness. It is the spark of life that keeps Dooley stalking around campus that lends to his attractiveness. This statue, stripped to the bones in cold metal, lacks the spark, which might have made it go on forever.

— Contact Frances Allitt.