A public art installation of two massive clown heads in downtown Bostonhas has gotten tourists and Bostonians talking — but not everyone’s laughing.
The clowns are part of the Downtown Boston Business Improvement District’s “Winteractive” walkable art experience launched this month in the hopes of giving those exploring downtown “a delightful experience around every corner.”
The clowns are one of 16 exhibits but they’ve been singled out by some passersby for being “creepy.”
Advertisement
Photos and videos of the installation shared by the BID received mixed reactions, with one Instagram user receiving over 900 likes on their commentary noting the piece “looks like something out of the original Batman movie.”
The unique piece, titled “Endgame (Nagg & Nell)” features two inflatable clown heads with shocked expressions wedged between two buildings in the Harlem Place Alley.
Artist Max Streicher told Axios he was trying to make the inflatable clowns look “sort of alarmed and just stunned and shocked by the condition they’re in.”
Another Internet commentator called the red-nosed clowns “very creepy” and several Instagram users compared them to the work of Junji Ito, a Japanese horror manga artist.
Others were quick to dunk on the city, with one critic calling the piece a “perfect metaphor” for the city, while another wrote, “There’s plenty of clowns in Boston the whole city filled.”
Advertisement
The inflatable clown artwork was placed downtown on Jan. 17 as part of the downtown BID’s “Winteractive” installation. Boston Globe via Getty Images
One Bostonian took to X to ponder, “Okay, whose idea was it to add creepy clowns to the already kinda threatening overall vibe…”
Another person joked, “Everyone that has ever wronged me is now a creepy clown head in downtown Boston.”
While there are always detractors, many were quick to sing “Send In The Clowns.”
Similar clown heads created by Streicher were erected in Toronto in 2010. Toronto Star via Getty ImagesThe clowns will remain downtown through April 14, just a week before the Boston Marathon. Boston Globe via Getty Images
“Didn’t know about this. Thanks for sharing,” one Instagram user commented along with a heart-eyes emoji. “Exciting things on the way in Downtown,” another person added.
“We saw them on Saturday, followed by a stroll into Brattle Book Shop. It was great to see everyone having such a great time with this. Boston provides so many great things to do,” another added.
Advertisement
Winteractive features eight artists and design teams from Canada, England and the US, many of whom are being presented in America for the first time, Downtown Boston BID said in a press release.
“This exhibition will animate and illuminate our streets this winter, bringing internationally acclaimed artists to Boston, and punctuating visits downtown that could include shopping, dining, live performances, or office work,” the organization’s president Michael Nichols said.
The 16 installations, which were set up on Jan. 17, will remain in the city through April 14, which is the Sunday before the Boston Marathon.
Winteractive has already received an abundance of attention. The Boston Fire Department had to remove a life-like sculpture of a fisherman perched atop a Chipotle restaurant after they received several concerned calls that it looked like a real person was sitting on the roof, The Boston Globe reported.
The piece has since been moved to a one-story Macy’s building, not far from other parts of the installation.
Advertisement
The Post has reached out to Streicher for comment.
“No Kings” rallies are scheduled in Boston and across Massachusetts on Saturday and are expected to draw large crowds, organizers said.
Organized by the ACLU of Massachusetts, Indivisible Mass Coalition, and Mass 50501, the event is a mass mobilization in protest of the Trump administration.
The No Kings theme was created by the 50501 Movement, a national movement made up of Americans who stand for democracy and against what they call the authoritarian actions of the Trump administration. The name 50501 stands for 50 states, 50 protests, one movement.
“The Trump administration is trying to shred the Constitution; the No Kings movement is an unequivocal statement that we, the people, will not let that happen. This will be the third global No Kings Day, and it’s not just about protesting what’s wrong—it’s about building something better. We intend to show our power, build our power, and power a democracy that advances freedom, equality, justice, and dignity for all,” organizers wrote.
Advertisement
The rally, one of thousands scheduled across the country this weekend, is planned for the Boston Common from 2 to 4 p.m. More than 100,000 people are expected to attend Boston’s rally. Other events are scheduled in Pittsfield, Northampton, Lancaster, Worcester, Framingham, Methuen, Lexington, and towns in southeastern Massachusetts and the Cape. For a map of No Kings events near you, click here.
Speakers include elected officials Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Gov. Maura Healey, Sen. Ed Markey and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, and civic leaders Hessann Farooqi Marcelo Gomes Da Silva, Darlene Lombos, president of the Greater Boston Labor Council, Carol Rose, executive director of ACLU of Massachusetts, Jessica Tang, president of the American Federation of Teachers of Massachusetts, and others. It will be moderated by Rahsaan Hall, president and CEO of Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts.
There will also be performances by the Dropkick Murphys, Boston Area Brigade of Activist Musicians, BVOCAL Chorus, and Jimmy Tingle.
A previous No Kings rally in October drew massive crowds estimated in the tens of thousands.
NBC10 Boston
NBC10 Boston
An aerial view of the crowd at Boston’s “No Kings” rally on the Common on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
ALLSTON, MASS. (WHDH) – Boston police are searching for a gunman who opened fire in Allston Thursday and left one person hurt.
Police responded to a radio call for a person shot in the area of Brighton Avenue at approximately 6:46 p.m. When officers arrived, they said they found a male “juvenile” suffering from a gunshot wound. The victim’s age has not been released.
Boston police said the shooter fled the scene and remains at large. No arrests have been made.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Boston police.
Advertisement
This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Join our Newsletter for the latest news right to your inbox