What's up with the red sculptures?

I have been meaning to do a blog post about this subject ever since the University of Michigan erected this red sculpture outside of the newly renovated art museum:

Now, in it of itself, this would not be particularly odd (apart from the fact that it is a large red sculpture that seemingly popped out of nowwhere one day) because hey its outside an art museum.  But where it really becomes interesting to me is the fact that Wright State already has a big red sculpture, affectionately known (or not) as BURT or Big Ugly Red Thing:

Now, my question becomes...What the heck is up with all the red sculptures?  Is it coincidence or is this a pattern all across the nation?  Personally, I like Wright State's...it looks pretty cool at night