Miley Cyrus video prompts removal of sculpture at Michigan college

Students at a Michigan university have learned one thing this semester: how to “ride it like Miley.”

Miley Cyrus’ recently released “Wrecking Ball” music video prompted a rash of copycat photos and Vine videos by students at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich. The students climbed aboard a prominent wrecking ball-like sculpture on campus, which swings like a pendulum, often posing in the nude as Cyrus does in the video.

Now the university administration has removed the sculpture, for “safety reasons,” they said in a statement on Tuesday.

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The installation — a 42-inch steel ball swinging from a 50-foot cable — is by the late Kansas City, Mo., artist, Dale Eldred. He created the “Steeple of Light” sculpture at Kansas City’s Community Christian Church. His “GV Wrecking Ball” sculpture at GVSU has been on campus, outside their Padnos Hall of Science, for about 18 years. It’s now in storage.

“The sculpture was removed so structural integrity could be reviewed,” said Tim Thimmesch, GVSU’s associate vice president of facilities services.

Students at GVSU have not taken kindly to the decision. A large group staged a protest Tuesday night outside of Padnos Hall chanting “Wrecking ball! Wrecking ball!”

The Twitter hashtags to come out of all this?

#ReinstallTheBall and #GVSUWreckingBall.

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Twitter.com/@debvankin