CowParade

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

CowParade is an international public art exhibit that has been featured in major cities all over the world. Fiberglass sculptures of cows are decorated by local artists, and distributed over the city centre, in public places such as train stations, important avenues, and parks. They often feature artwork and designs specific to local culture, as well as city life and other relevant themes. After the exhibiton in the city, which lasts many months, the cows are auctioned off and the proceeds donated to charity.

There are a few variations of shape, but the 3 most common shapes of cow were created by Pascal Knapp, a Swiss-born sculptor who was commissioned to create the cows specifically for the CowParade series of events.

The concept of "cow parade" was created in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1998^[1] by artistic director Walter Knapp. It started its international fame when Chicago businessman Peter Hanig organized the event in Chicago in 1999.

Contents 1 CowParade Cities 2 Legacy 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

[edit] CowParade Cities

The Americas

Mexico City, Mexico (2006) Mexicali, Baja California (2006) Buenos Aires, Argentina (2006) Madison, Wisconsin (2006) Boston, Massachusetts (2006) Denver, Colorado (2006) Belo Horizonte, Brazil (2006) Sao Paulo, Brazil (2006) Curitiba, Brazil (2006)

Portland, Oregon (2005) Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (2004) West Hartford, Connecticut (2003) Atlanta, Georgia (2003) Las Vegas, Nevada (2002) San Antonio, Texas (2002)

Houston, Texas (2001) Kansas City, Missouri (2001) New York, New York (2000) Stamford, Connecticut (2000) West Orange, New Jersey (2000) Chicago, Illinois (1999)

Europe

Telemark, Norway (2006) Budapest, Hungary (2006) Paris, France (2006) Lisbon, Portugal (2006) Edinburgh, Scotland (2006) Moscow, Russia (2006) Florence, Italy (2005) Barcelona, Spain (2005) Athens, Greece (2006)

Bucharest, Romania (2005) Warsaw, Poland (2005) Bratislava, Slovakia (2005) Geneva, Switzerland (2005) Monaco (2005) Prague, Czech Republic (2004)

Manchester, England (2004) Stockholm, Sweden (2004) Dublin, Ireland (2003) Brussels, Belgium (2003) Isle of Man (2003) London, England (2002) Ventspils, Latvia (2002)

Africa/Asia/Australia

Sydney, Australia (2002) Tokyo, Japan (2006) South Africa (2004) Auckland, New Zealand (2003)

[edit] Legacy

Miniature figurines of the CowParade cows have become a popular collectible. [1]

The success of CowParade inspired many other animal-themed public art projects, most notably the "Trail of the Painted Ponies" of Santa Fe, New Mexico (which also inspired a series of miniatures) [2].

Other cities that have hosted similar fundraisers include:

• Tuscon, Arizona, "Ponies del Pueblo" [3]
• San Francisco, California, "Hearts in San Francisco" [4]
• Washington D.C., "Party Animals", a display of donkeys and elephants, [5] and "PandaMania" [6]
• Pensacola, Florida, "Pelicans in Paradise" [7]
• Lexington, Kentucky, "Gallopalooza" (horses) [8]
• New Orleans, Louisiana, "Festival of Fins" [9]
• Eugene, Oregon, "Ducks on Parade" [10]
• Salem, Oregon, "Salmon in the City" [11]
• Boyertown, Pennsylvania, "Bear Fever" [12]
• Bucks County, Pennsylvania, "Miles of Mules" [13]
• Seattle, Washington, "Pigs on Parade" [14]

[edit] See also

• Big Pig Gig
• Gladys the Swiss Dairy Cow

[edit] References

1. ^ http://switzerland.isyours.com/e/photo-gallery/geneva/parade-cows.html

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: CowParade

• The official (US) Cowparade website
• Cow Parade Europe
• Edinburgh Cow Parade 2006
• Paris Cow Parade 2006
• Flickr photo pool - Edinburgh Cow Parade
• Manchester 2004 Cow Parade
• Eat My Fear - David Lynch's rejected submission for the New York Cow Parade in 2000
• The Militant Graffiti Artists of Stockholm - Kidnapping and decapitating of fiber-glass cow, (2004)