An 18-meter-tall Rubber Duck made its debut in Beijing on Friday after a smaller version made a splash in Hong Kong months ago.

The Rubber Duck exhibition, the brainchild of Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, is part of activities that prelude Beijing Design Week, which runs from Sept. 26 to Oct. 3.

The inflatable rubber duck was placed on waters in the International Garden Expo Park in the outskirts of Beijing, where Beijing's "mother river," the Yongding River, passes through.

The duck will stay in the park until Sept. 23, then move to the Summer Palace, a famous Beijing tourist spot, where it will be on display until Oct. 26.

Li Yangyang, exhibition director of Beijing Design Week, said Hofman wanted to find places with Beijing characteristics, and that is why the classical Chinese park and the ancient royal gardens of the Summer Palace were chosen.

The giant duck is made of over 200 pieces of rubber, but it was not completely inflated by the time of its debut on Friday morning, when maintenance staff on a boat were still working to inflate the duck.

The rubber duck is guarded not only by staff workers but also by 10 volunteers wearing yellow T-shirts and hats with a rubber duck logo.

Sun Yidong, a volunteer who guides visitors to the duck, said the art brings vigor to the traditional Chinese park.

"Seeing the giant Rubber Duck made me feel like I'm a kid again," Sun said.

Due in part to light rain on Friday, the duck's Beijing debut did not make as much of a scene as its debut in Hong Kong few months ago, when a huge crowd of local residents and tourists swarmed to the harbor to catch a glimpse.

Expo workers said they expect more people to come and visit the duck on weekends.

Zhao Yan said she had been following news about the duck since 2007, when the duck began its journey.

"I even considered going to Hong Kong to see it. It's so great that the duck is now in Beijing," Zhao said.

Before arriving in Beijing, the Rubber Duck traveled to 13 cities in nine countries.

"The aim of the Rubber Duck is simply to bring everyone back to childhood again," said Zeng Hui, deputy manager of the Beijing Design Week Organizing Committee Office. "It can be a toy for adults."

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Visitors pose with giant rubber duck in Garden Expo Park in Beijing