US-JAPAN-ART-COLUMBUS-NISHI

Scaffolding surrounds the base of the colossal 13-foot-tall statue of Christopher Columbus at Columbus Circle in New York on October 8, 2012 where Japanese artist Tatsu Nishi’s installation around the statue standing in a fully furnished, modern living room featuring tables, chairs, couch, rug, and flat-screen television, reflecting the artist’s interpretation of contemporary New York style. His installation around the weathered marble statue, designed by the Italian sculptor Gaetano Russo in 1892, rises to more than 75 feet atop a granite column. Visitors can enter the "Discovering Columbus" apartment built around the statue elevated from the ground by scaffolding, located in the downtown Columbus Circle until November 18. AFP PHOTO/TIMOTHY A. CLARY (Photo credit should read TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/GettyImages)