User:James.lebinski/Gladys the Swiss Dairy Cow
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Gladys the Swiss Dairy Cow, a.k.a. Gladys, is the name of a well known work of public art that has been continuously created and updated by her artist/owners since August of 2002. The underlying sculpture is a fiberglass Swiss Dairy cow, and is the same shape and size as the famous Cow Parade cows.
This sculpture has been used to create more than 50 pieces of performance art by decorating the it with paint, cloth, and various other materials for each holiday. Gladys was displayed in Fairfield, Connecticut from October of 2002 until April of 2006, and can currently be found in Monroe, Connecticut.
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[edit] History
In July of 2002, a fiberglass cow sculpture was recovered from a dumpster in Norwalk, Connecticut. The sculpture's smashed body and four broken legs were repaired The sculpture, painted pink was initially placed on display in Fairfield, Connecticut on August 3, 2002.
During the course of further repairs additional coats of paint were applied over the original pink coat of paint. The resulting primitive work was the first piece of public art using this fiberglass cow sculpture as a foundation. The work, informally referred to as "Wonder Bread Cow" be became an object of attention, and attracted a following of curious onlookers, who offered with suggestions to the artist to create whimsical designs.
The first official seasonal artwork using the sculpture was titled "Gladys As A Skeleton". This design was created for Halloween 2002, and a significant amount of public attention was generated by this artwork. This public response was the genesis of the ongoing project to create holiday themed performance art.
The result next work of art was created for Christmas 2002. The cow sculpture was painted as Santa Claus and the artwork was titled "Gladys as Santa Cow".
These two pieces of art were the subject of an article and review entitled "Cow mooves into Fairfield neighborhood" authored by Andrew Brophy of The Connecticut Post on February 14, 2003. The article is archived at www.connpost.com and is Article ID: 1179930
The subsequent work for the cow sculpture was for Valentines Day, 2003 and was titled "Gladys as a Valentine".
Following the Valentines Day 2003 creation, in March of 2003, the cow sculpture was converted to "Gladys as a Leprechaun". The use of a single prop was in keeping with using paint as a primary media.
In April of 2003 the media used to create the performance art was expanded to include additional props and attachments. A set of ears was necessary to achieve the "chocolate bunny" motif and required a transition to additional techniques.
In May of 2003 the cow sculpture was converted into "Gladys as Uncle Sam". This public art piece was proposed as an entry to the 2003 Memorial Day parade committee in Fairfield, CT and accepted according to its rules of conduct. The art was then incorporated into a parade float for the 2003 Memorial Day parade. This parade is Connecticut's largest, attended by more than 20,000 persons each Memorial Day. The is piece represents the first large scale viewing of the work, and a troop of performers, in matching Uncle Sam and Statue of Liberty costumes accompanied the float during the parade. As a result, the work was awarded "Best Appearing Float - Service Club" by a panel of judges, chaired by the Honorable Judge Caruso and including selectwoman Denise Dougiello.
In July of 2003 the cow sculpture was converted into "Gladys in a itsy-bitsy teenie-weenie yellow polka dot bikini". The use of props was expanded to include props that were not physically attached to the sculpture.
In August of 2003 the cow sculpture was converted to performance art with a first day of school motif. The work "Gladys as a School Bus" represented the first piece that was designed to closely resemble a real-life object - a school bus, and was achieved in a paint only media.
In October of 2003 the cow sculpture was converted into "Gladys as a Scarecrow", inspired by the Wizard of OZ. This marked the first complete departure from the sculpture as a painted work. The use of straw, natural fiber, burlap, and organic materials was incorporated to achieve a fall motif. This artwork was featured in a Connecticut Post photo essay entitled "Spooky Cow" and the article specifically noted the evolution from paint to other media. This work was also featured on Cablevision channel 12 as a fall art background to an evening newscast. Further, a separate piece of performance art based on a pig sculpture was incorporated with a complementary "wicked witch" design, also inspired by the wizard of oz. This piece was entitled "Sophie as a Witch".
In December of 2003 the cow sculpture was converted into a Christmas theme "Gladys as a Reindeer. This work was featured in a multi-page article in The Fairfield Citizen News, a twice weekly newspaper serving a town of more than 50,000 persons. The pig sculpture was also incorporated into this design, with a complementary elf outfit and was titled "Sophie as an Elf".
In February of 2003, the sculpture was converted into "Gladys as a Valentine Bride". The pig sculpture was also created in a complementary piece "Sophie as a groom".
In March of 2003 the cow sculpture was converted into a a Saint Patrick's Day work. Considerable controversy erupted among art critics because of a misperception concerning the rainbow motif. The rainbow colors were true to the ROYGBIV color spectrum of a rainbow. Ultimately, the use of a pot of gold prop was added, along with a second piece of public art titled "Sophie as a Leprechaun" to clarify the "pot of gold at the end of a rainbow theme".
Easter season in April of 2004 saw the sculpture transformed into a work of art that featured an Easter Bonnet prop, and multiple painted Easter eggs with individual images. The accompanying pig sculpture was also created with an Easter motif. "Sophie as an Easter Ham" featured an Easter Bonnet and painted caricature of an Easter ham on its side.
In May of 2004 the Uncle Sam motif was re-created, representing the first time a work was repeated. The art was featured as an entry in the 2004 Fairfield Memorial Day Parade. This piece also incorporated the pig sculpture as a stylized American Flag. The art was featured in a photo essay in the Fairfield Citizen News and was awarded "honorable mention" by the committee of parade float judges.
In August of 2004 the cow sculpture was transformed into a tribute to the Fairfield Fire Department, Station 2. The work incorporated memorial logos for the Worchester 6, and 9/11 FDNY. The firefighters union logo and Irish firefighter logo were also reproduced.
In October of 2004 the cow sculpture was converted into "Gladys as Dracula". Additionally, an Ogden Nash poem was incorporated on a tombstone prop.
In December of 2004 the cow sculpture was converted into a lighted Christmas tree. The use of additional props was expanded to incorporate both day-visible ornaments, presents, and a Christmas tree, as well as night visible multi-color lights.
In January of 2005 the cow sculpture was converted into a Mardi-Gras jester theme titled "Gladys as a Mardi-Gras Jester".
In April of 2005 the cow sculpture in the shape of a Spring/Easter scheme and represented the first use of a sponge painting technique to achieve the green grass effect with sufficient fading to deliver a suitable image.
At the end of April 2005 a charity silent auction to benefit Saint Thomas Aquinas School in Fairfield, Connecticut included an item that was described as the right to commission a performance art piece based on the cow sculpture. The owners/artists donated their services to this effort and a design for "Gladys as a Saint Joseph High School National Honor Society Graduate" was delivered. The cap and gown were added and are representative of a National Honor Society Graduate. The finished work was displayed during graduation week in June of 2005
The next work based on the cow sculpture was created as "Gladys as an Animal Control Vehicle" was created in tribute to the Fairfield Police Department Animal Control Department. The pig sculpture was also incorporated with a prisoner motif.
In December of 2005 the cow sculpture was used to create "Gladys as a Shepherd". The primary media was blue and white textures cotton cloth.
In January of 2006, the cow sculpture was converted to "Gladys as a Cow". The motif was a black and white spotted cow. This was the first attempt to portray the sculpture in a natural set of colors. This work was the subject of a front page photo spread and multi-page article covering the history of the work and its relocation to Monroe.
In April of 2006 the sculpture was placed on display in Monroe, Connecticut, withe the natural Black and White pattern. This work was the subject of a Monroe Chronicle photo essay titled "Where in Monroe".
[edit] Gallery
 Gladys as a Scarecrow. |
 Gladys as a Reindeer. |
 Gladys as a Rainbow. |
 Gladys as a Mardi-Gras Jester. |
 Gladys as an Easter Icon. |
 Gladys as Dracula. |
 Gladys as a Christmas Tree - Night View. |
 Gladys as Fairfield Fire Department Two |
 Gladys as Fairfield Police Animal Control. |
 Gladys as Fairfield Police Animal Control. |
 Gladys as a Spring/Easter Scene. |
 Gladys as a Valentine Bride. |
 View 1: Gladys as an award winning float in 2005. |
Gladys Memorial Day 2004 2.jpg
View 2: Connecticut Post Coverage of Gladys an award winning float in 2004. |
 Gladys as a Christmas Shepherd. |
 Gladys as a Saint Joseph High School National Honor Society Graduate. |
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Gladys Move 1.jpg
Gladys Mooving 1. |
Gladys Move 2.jpg
Gladys Mooving 2. |
Gladys Move 3.jpg
Gladys Mooving 3. |
 Gladys Mooving 4. |
[edit] References
"Cow mooves into Fairfield neighborhood" authored by Andrew Brophy of The Connecticut Post on February 14, 2003. The article is archived at www.connpost.com and is Article ID: 1179930
- Deer, Tracy. "Plastic VIPs Go", Connecticut Post, April 28, 2006.
- Moran, Vin. "Family's move means Fairfield losing fiberglass bovine (free article preview)", Connecticut Post, April 28, 2006.
- Spinelli, Toni. "Holiday down on the Farm (well, sort of)", Connecticut Post, November 27, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-11-27.
- Dydzuhn, Karen Kovac. "Gaffney's Ghoulish House offers Halloween fun", Monroe Courier, October 26, 2006.
