Texas Town Wins Battle Over Huge Playboy Bunny

A 40-foot high Playboy bunny logo that had upset some West Texas residents will be removed from its roadside display and hauled to a Dallas museum. The neon bunny—part of the "Playboy Marfa" sculpture by New York contemporary artist Richard Phillips—will be dismantled this month and taken from highway US 90 to the Dallas Contemporary museum, about 500 miles northeast. The sculpture debuted last June in Marfa, about 180 miles southeast of El Paso. Some Marfa residents were upset that their town—known as a hub for artists and creative types—was being used for marketing purposes.

Also, Texas transportation officials said the sculpture lacked a state permit required for outdoor billboards and gave Playboy 45 days to remove it. The bunny will be displayed at the museum in April as part of an exhibition highlighting Phillips' work, says a museum spokeswoman. The museum does not keep its art as part of any collection, so the neon bunny will be moved again—it's just not clear where. (More Playboy stories.)