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        This is 164th in a series spotlighting pigs from the Big Pig Gig Public Art Project taking place in Cincinnati, Covington and Newport. Find past pig profiles and event details - and vote for your favorite pig — at www.cincinnati.com/bigpiggig

        Don't knock this pig. It's a technical foul.

        Artist: Toby Lay, 41, Park Hills, designer and illustrator. He is a member of the board of the Mathis Foundation.

        Sponsor: Jan and Owen Wrassman for the Mathis Foundation for Children.

        This pig's pen: Lobby, 312 Walnut St.

        You were inspired by: Mike Mathis, a referee in the National Basketball Association, who has a foundation for foster children.

        What's the pig idea? Everybody famous should get a statue. I wanted to call attention to all the work he has done for kids. I dressed the pig like an NBA ref, except the jersey has the initials NPA and the basketball is a Sowling.

        You want people to look at this pig and think: If all the NBA refs are as heavy as this one, wouldn't they wonder why they missed all those calls?

        Completing the project took: Six weeks.

        What's the matter?: I had the Glass Hand build the basketball and the whistle. I did the sanding and painting, in acrylic.

        Your high on the hog was: All the ribbing that Mike Mathis has been getting because of the pig.

        Pig peeve: The pig wouldn't fit in the elevator so I had to carry it piggy back up five flights of stairs to my studio on Seventh Street.

        Best pig tale: The pig has been making the rounds of the city. They had him at the Mathis Foundation golf tournament and auction in June, and he was on the grandstand at the Hamilton County Fair.

        My favorite pork dish: Barbecued pork rinds.

        Do you consider this art or porkography? Art is in the eye of the beholder.

        If your pig starred in a movie, who would you cast to play the role? Rodney Dangerfield.

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