It is perhaps only natural that we're inclined to see emoticon-like faces in otherwise inanimate objects—cars are a canonical example, as is this AmEx spot from a couple years back, and the emoticon itself is simply an Internet-Age variation of the same.
Wall-mounted coathooks must have struck Brooklyn-based designer David Barry (originally hailing from Ireland and of no relation to the Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist of the same name) as vaguely visage-like, at least enough to inspire a fun personal project: "Frank," a powdercoated steel wall hook that bears more than a passing resemblance to a woodland critter.
His story goes something like this:
Frank is a quiet sort of fellow, who simply likes to hang out. He's incredibly patient and diligent. If you ask him to hold something, he'll never let go. He is quite literally as strong as steel, though he's just three inches tall.Growing up, Frank knew he wasn't like the other rabbits. Their ears were floppy and covered in fur; his were rigid and strong. As a young rabbit, Frank's life changed when he went to the circus. There, he saw a seal balancing a ball on his nose. Frank was inspired. He tried to balance things on his nose, without much success, until one day he decided to try balancing them on his ears. He was a natural, and was soon holding up all kinds of objects with his ears for hours, even days, at a time.
Find out what happens to Frank after the jump...
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