Being the first edition published by Helga Maria Klosterfelde in 1990, this silkscreen is a construction drawing Lawrence Weiner made for a public art project in Hamburg, Germany. It was a floating wooden sculpture, anchored on the river Elbe, with metal letters depicting the words „Wir sind keine Enten auf dem Teich“ (We are not ducks on a pond) on one side, and „Wir sind Schiffe auf dem Meer“ (we are ships at sea) on the other side. This referred to the city’s location around the Alster lake as well as the river Elbe, and the its large harbor as a „gate to the world“.

The title is also used for another edition by Lawrence Weiner from 2017, (WE ARE SHIPS AT SEA NOT DUCKS ON A POND), a silkscreen travel poster referencing the Hamburg’s historic importance as a gateway of global passenger shipping.