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BALLOON ARTIST JOHN REID TAKES THE TRADITIONAL BALLOON ANIMAL TO NEW HEIGHTS AT UTAH COMIC CON
Long Island-based balloon artist John Reid successfully attempted a new world record at the Salt Lake City Comic Con convention from April 14-19, 2014 by creating the world's largest balloon sculpture ever made by a single person. Reid is a balloon artist with more than 20 years of experience who has made every kind of sculpture from hundreds of traditional balloon animals to exquisite designer balloon dresses that have appeared at Disney venues, on the Martha Stewart Show, and as decorations at the White House more than five times. From puppies to Presidents, John Reid and his company Epic Balloons have accomplished great feats of balloon art.
Reid spent 42 hours at the Epic Balloons booth at Comic Con in Salt Lake City, Utah putting together a balloon robot he appropriately named "Poptimus Prime." The project used 4,302 purple, green, black, gray and white balloons and was so tall that it could not fit upright in the convention center. When all was said and done, the measurements logged in the books, Poptimus stood 50 ft, 8 inches tall with a wingspan of 44 feet, 4 inches and was enough to have his sculpture certified by the Record Holders Republic as the largest balloon sculpture ever made by a single person. Thankfully, no one was close by with a straight pin.
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“Comic Con was the perfect event to attempt to create the largest balloon sculpture ever made by one person filled with hot air,” joked Reid. “The people and fans that descend upon Comic Con are very intense and I thought that the largest balloon robot would fit right in with the over-the-top atmosphere created in Salt Lake City.”
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You can view Reid’s balloon achievement on YouTube which condenses the 41 hours of work he put into the project in less than 4 minutes. You can also see many of John’s balloon creations on his website at: www.epicballoons.com and follow him on Facebook at Facebook.com/epicballoons, on Twitter at Twitter.com/epic_balloons and Instagram at Instagram.com/johnreidmagic.
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