The removal of the iconic Elmwood Avenue neon tango dancers, located at Bidwell Parkway, has been creating a big stir in the community. While it is sad to see the whimsical work of art leave its longtime home (apparently the building owner didn’t want it anymore), the good news is that it will one day return to the Elmwood Village, completely restored, in a yet-to-be-decided location.
As workers were taking the tango dancers down, Aaron Ingrao, the greatest photographer in all of the known universe and probably beyond (in fact inter-dimensionally), was able to record the moment with a snapshot. According to Ingrao, the art installation will be housed and restored at NAS Signs Company on Elmwood Avenue, until further notice. The Elmwood Village Association will then keep the community up to date with relocation news.
The tango dancers have not been lit for a couple of years. The piece was first installed at the corner around 1981-82. Throughout the years, there were a number of efforts to restore the neon – most recently it was the tango community that came together to raise funds for the restoration, but it didn’t take long before the lights went out again. Hopefully now that it will be in the capable hands of the NAS team, the entire piece can be optimally fixed, so that it will provide many more years of intact service at its future home.