The World’s Largest Mustache looks like it could have been made by pop artist Claes Oldenburg, famous for his colossal sculptures of everyday objects like hamburgers, shuttlecocks, and pliers. In fact, the massive mustache is the 3D printed creation of Minnesotan Matthew Udermann and, despite its whimsical character, it was conceived of as a means to raise awareness of prostate cancer, a serious health issue that one in seven men in the US face each year.
While Udermann, who lives in Chaska, Minnesota, is the brains behind the mustache, several sponsors helped to make his 3D design a reality. Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based Stratasys contributed assistance with engineering and printed the massive ‘stache, a process that took more than 300 hours to complete, in six pieces.
Other partners in the effort were The Bernard Group, EmbroidMe, Cell Phone Repair, and several more dedicated, Minnesota-based collaborators. Also billed among the mustache’s founders were lead designer Gil Medina, lead engineer and printer Dustin Kloempkin, and chief supporter Krista Udermann.
Why a mustache? Probably obviously, it’s symbolic of masculinity. Its sheer size, however, is immediately attention-getting. The World’s Largest Mustache (WLM) measures 11.5 feet wide, 3 feet tall, and 22 inches deep and is currently displayed in Udermann’s front yard, where it was installed on August 23, 2015 to coincide with the birth of Udermann’s daughter, Brooklyn. The initial installation was in July 2015.
Starting in November, the World’s Largest Mustache began its grand, awareness-raising, 45-day tour and is expected to be seen by over one million people as it travels from the famous Mall of America for Movember’s Gala there. Movember is an international organization that is, says its website, “committed to changing the face of men’s health,” so the WLM couldn’t be more appropriate. Other stops on the tour are the Ronald McDonald House, TCF Bank Stadium, the downtown area of the city of Carver, MN, and Cell Phone Repair stores in Bloomington and Eden Prairie, MN, both of which are owned by Udermann, who is also an author.
Even before beginning its grand tour, the WLM has captured the attention of the public in an overwhelmingly positive way.
“Who doesn’t love a mustache, especially when its for a good cause?” said Udermann. “Some people love it immediately, others take some warming up.”
For those viewers still on the fence–although we can’t imagine skepticism in this regard–learning about the cause behind the project wins them over. To that end, Udermann provided a list he called “Five Reasons to Care,” which explain the concept of the project and also emphasize that the publicity potential of the eye-grabbing, 3D printed WLM can be employed to raise awareness for other causes beside prostate cancer.
Udermann is looking for a permanent place to display the Mustache so that it will be visible to as many people as possible but also, in keeping with its installation in honor of his own child, accessible to kids, who will surely be the artwork’s number one fans. You can get more information concerning this worthwhile and delightfully in-your-face 3D printed Mustache on the website and the official Facebook page.
What are your thoughts on this giant 3D Print? Let us know in the 3D Printed Mustache forum thread on 3DPB.com.
