Until that light rail gets built, a trip to Dallas isn’t always in the cards for Texans in San Antonio. Driving four hours before you can even start your vacation is a tough sell. But, there will be hundreds, if not thousands, of new visitors to Dallas over the next couple of months as the Big D acts as one of the top hosts for the FIFA World Cup. So, for anyone confused why there’s a giant eyeball downtown, here’s the backstory.
The Eyeboretum, the Giant Eyeball, or simply Eye, was actually built in 2010 as part of the Chicago Loop Alliance’s Art Loop program, according to its website. The Eye was unveiled at Chicago’s Pritzker Park but relocated to Dallas three years later and has been sitting there, ever watching, for over a decade, becoming a popular photo space, hosting weddings, yoga classes and even the Dallas Art Fair’s closing party.
The Eye is a 30-foot fiberglass, resin and steel replica of its creator, American artist Tony Tasset’s own eye. Tasset claims the piece “means whatever you want,” but it has come to reference a parahoah’s eye, a Masonic eye and the eye of Big Brother from 1984, according to the website.
“Eye is one of those images that has taken on a number of meanings over the years,” Tasset says on the website. “God and consciousness are just two of them.”
The World Cup arrives in Dallas (actually Arlington) on June 14, as the Netherlands and Japan face off in the opening match of Group F. AT&T Stadium will host multiple games throughout the tournament, including a semifinal on July 14.
Fans on Reddit suggested it should’ve been painted as a soccer ball in honor of the World Cup. Over 1,000 people agreed, many saying they would’ve preferred that to the city painting over Robert Wyland’s “Ocean Life” whale mural, getting painted over for a FIFA mural.
Find it: 1601 Main St., Dallas, TX 75201