You're not gonna need a bigger WorldPride icon as Progress Shark goes global
Progress Shark may have black eyes like a doll's eyes, but it's multi-coloured rainbow midriff has catapulted it into an unlikely WorldPride icon.
Sydney’s lord mayor is Clover Moore, so technically that makes her the mayor of Progress Shark city, is also a huge fan. She said: “It’s your time to shine Progress Shark."
No doubt the event and great white shark will be good for bringing in summer dollars to the city.
So, this is what happens... The Australian Museum created it to welcome its hundreds of thousands of visitors, with it now becoming something of a viral sensation and has surfaced as the unintentional icon of WorldPride, which has just kicked off its month long celebrations in Sydney. Clearly, this is going to be the best WorldPride they've ever had.
Artist George Buchanan brought Progress Shark to life by sewing together the shark-sized rainbow Lycra leotard, stitching it together with a 25lb fishing line on to the 10 metre shark.
"It's a ridiculous choice," she tells the BBC.
"But that's actually what is making people happy… I think people need a bit of silliness in their lives."
"It's this supposedly menacing creature, but you look at its face and it's very, very cute now. It's got this really cheeky grin."
Quint would likely approve, although he'll never put on a Lycra leotard again. Probably.
And now the whole world is doing a Chief Brody about this colourful shark, it isn't making them fear the finned creature, it is making them smile like a son of a bitch.
Such positive positioning isn't just great news for WorldPride, jaws are wagging about Progress Shark and are flocking to it rather than running away from it, helping raise the profile and awareness of how great and misunderstood white sharks are.
Words by Dean Newman
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