Downtown Chicago's grazing cows cheer locals, tourists
By Riyadi
CHICAGO (JP): Hundreds of cows are grazing in downtown Chicago streets. But wait, this is not the return of the stockyards, this is part of the city's summer public art display, titled Cows on Parade.
Over 300 live-size, dressed-up cows were spotted almost everywhere in public places in Chicago, mostly in downtown, cheering locals and welcoming visitors to the city.
Since the exhibit opened on June 15, the cows have become a magnet attracting people to the city. They have brought people together, from Chicago and beyond. They have enticed people to pat, photograph and climb upon them. They have even lured children to milk them from their artificial udders.
The cows will continue to cheer and amuse visitors until Oct. 31.
"The city of Chicago has truly become the city of cows," remarked Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, when opening his speech at the inauguration of a moon rock sample display at the Tribune Tower.
Cow-coordinator Nathan Mason from the Public Art Program at the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs said the Cows On Parade had shot two birds with one stone: boosting Chicagoans' pride of the city; and promoting tourism.
"It's doing both. People are coming in to see the cows; artists make money by working on the cows; people are stopping and talking about the cows, about art; and it's creating a lot of talk and discussion," he told The Jakarta Post.
Cows on Parade is the idea of a Chicago businessman, Peter Hanig, who was enthralled by 800 Swiss cows during his vacation in Zurich last summer. He then spearheaded the private sector effort to import Zurich's Cows Parade to Chicago.
Hanig, joined by two other local businessmen, led a volunteer sales committee of cowhands that guaranteed the financial success of the exhibition.
They ordered more than 300 hollow fiberglass bovine sculptures from Switzerland, and shipped them to Chicago. The cows were imported naked, unpainted.
The artistic merits of the cows was assured by the Public Art Program, which then invited all professional and amateur artists as well as student artists to submit cow proposals.
Mason said his office then invited interested businesses in the city to shop through a cattle-log of artist cow proposals to pick the cow of their dreams. Once, the businesses decided their choice, the artists would be called in to work on the naked cows and create the art works on them.
He said the prices of decorated cows range from US$3,000 to $11,000 each, depending on the artists who worked on them.
The businesses are also allowed to use their own artists and buy unpainted cows from the Public Art Program.
One naked cow costs $2,000. Mason, however, refused to reveal how much his office paid for the naked cows from Switzerland and only said, "The Swiss don't make things cheap."
Those businesses which chose to buy naked cows were required to submit design proposals that met the Public Art Program's criteria. Mason said his office encourages creativity and artistry but prohibits the use of logos, trademarks and commercials as well as religious and political messages.
Nevertheless, the boundary between art and commercialism is so thin. Companies could always convey their commercial messages in a more subtle way through their cows without undermining the rules.
The commercial messages on cows could easily be found in many areas, for instance, at Restaurant Mrs. Park Tavern which hosts a cookies cow, at Water Tower Place shopping center with a cow carrying a load of shopping goods, and at Wrigley building which has gum-flavor cows.
Chicago Tribune art critic Alan G. Artner complained that too much of the artwork on the cows blurred the line between art and advertising.
"Anyone but small children should be able to tell the difference between art and advertising, yet with Cows that doesn't happen," he said.
Mason acknowledged that some businesses had used their cows to promote their products and services. Nevertheless, he asserted that it was still a good public art project.
"Yes, there is a little advertising over there. Nevertheless, it's art, although it may not be the highest art around. But it's good art and engages a lot of artists to do project that are not related to their traditional art forms."
Anyway, those who want to see fine art cows should go to Cow Moo-seum, where the works of noted artists are displayed. They include cows by Karl Wirsum, Gladys Nilsson, Ruth Duckworth and David Klamen.
Mason noted that his office did not see such commercialization of cows as a problem. In fact, the businesses should benefit from Cows On Parade as they are the ones who finance the project.
Partnership between businesses and artists should be encouraged, he argued, and Cows On Parade has initiated that.
Mason claimed that Cows On Parade is the most community based public art project ever -- that is in terms of having direct sponsorship by individual businesses and participation by individual artists.
Student artist Stacey Allen from the Art Institute of Chicago said Cows On Parade is definitely beneficial for amateur or student artists like her, arguing that they get more exposure through their cows, besides the money.
"This is a great chance for me to get my name printed in public places," she said.
Cows On Parade also benefits two city-operated gift shops in the downtown area, the only outlets authorized to sell cow merchandise. The two stores have seen a sharp increase in revenues, said Brad Thacker, director of retail at the Department of Cultural Affairs.
They had sold about US$30,000 in cow merchandise since the exhibit opened on June 15, he said, estimating that the cow promotion will generate another $70,000 by the end of August.
The two stores even disappointed its visitors when it ran out of cow T-shirts earlier this month due to restrictions surrounding the merchandise. Exclusive rights to produce the cow items, including T shirts, baseball hats emblazoned with the words "Cows On Parade," bungee cows that bounce up and down on a string, are held by a company based in Zurich, Cows Parade Worldwide.
"This Cows On Parade is really fun. I want to share the fun with friends abroad by sending them cow merchandise," said Richard Wier, a Chicagoan who, together with his wife and grandaugter, bought several cow gifts at the Chicago Water Works Visitor Center.
Besides the cow gifts, the Visitor Center also serves black, brown, pink and purple cow ice creams for visitors who want to cool themselves from the scorching heat.
The cows will also benefit charity groups. At the end of the project, on Oct. 31, all decorated cows will be auctioned to the public. The proceeds will go to charity organizations.
"So you see, Cows On Parade benefits almost every one in the city, from those in the businesses to the charities," said Mason.