Orville (cat)

Orville is a cat who was converted into a radio-controlled quadcopter and renamed Orvillecopter. After Orville was killed in a car accident, his owner, Bart Jansen, collaborated with Arjen Beltman to create the "half cat, half machine." Orvillecopter based on Lotus T580, had his first test flight on March 9 2012.

Orville was named for the aviator Orville Wright. Jansen has said he did this to pay tribute to his pet.

The Orvillecopter was exhibited at the KunstRAI art festival at Amsterdam RAI Exhibition and Convention Centre in Amsterdam in early June 2012.

Reactions
Paddy Johnson commented that deceased pets have been used in art before, calling it "sort of a European flavor of art making." Katinka Simonse, a Dutch artist known as TINKEBELL, killed her cat Pinkeltje and made it into a purse.

Graffiti reading "Kill the animal killers" and "Shame" was written on the RAI convention center. The Dutch Party for the Animals condemned Orvillecopter and will send letters of complaint to KunstRAI organizers and RAI. Organizer Liesbeth Hemelrijk defended Jansen to the Los Angeles Times, "Even though artist Bart Jansen loved his cat when it was still alive and cared so much for it that he turned it into art after it was run over by a car, people declare him the worst person in the country."

The American People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called Orvillecopter "a macabre way to honor a beloved family member."

Due to the international attention, Orvillecopter's asking price has been raised from £8,000 (€12,500) to €100,000.

At the end of 2012, Reuters selected an image of Orvillecopter as one of its best images of 2012, and that and other images of Orvillecopter were included in other annual roundups.

Additional sources


cat-stub Category:Individual cats