Don Featherstone (artist)

Donald Featherstone (January 25, 1936 – June 22, 2015) was an American artist most widely known for his 1957 creation of the plastic pink flamingo while working for Union Products.

[3] When Featherstone was asked in 1957 to sculpt a duck, he purchased one, which he named Charlie, and later released the bird in Coggshall Park.

[6] In 1996, Featherstone was awarded the 1996 Ig Nobel Art Prize for his creation of the pink flamingo,[1] and he also began his tenure as president of Union Products, which he held until he retired in 2000.

[11] In 2010, Cado Products purchased the copyrights and plastic molds for the pink flamingos and continues to manufacture them.

They are generally sold in sets of two—one holding its head erect, nearly three feet (0.91 m) high, the other bending over as if looking for food.