On Parade

 

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Last month I talked about the love lock bridges found around the world. The idea of a specific bridge or sculpture designated or created in a town reminded me of other creations I have seen throughout the years that make you immediately know your location. Now I could be talking about things such as the gigantic “bean” in downtown Chicago, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Statue of Liberty or worldly famous Ethel Tower or Pyramids. But let’s think a little more obscure.

What about super large cowboy boots, cows, pigs, rearing horses, and even Jayhawks? Instead of a single artistic wonder, let’s think in multiples, scattered throughout the town so visitors are taken on a sort of scavenger or treasure hunt. Once I started researching the ones I actually knew about, I found there are similar “art parade projects” everywhere from Anchorage, Alaska to Washington DC; even in Europe. While many were started as fundraisers for various city projects, some were created for the love of art or as a way to showcase a particular aspect of their city. There doesn’t seem to be a rhyme or reason behind why a city started their art project. 

My grandson in Cheyenne  

And so our tour begins in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Scattered throughout the town are twenty-five 8-foot tall, hand painted boots depicting aspects of the state’s history-- everything from gambling and outlaws to governors. The project began as a fund raiser for the Cheyenne Depot museum with businesses sponsoring a boot and local artists doing the decorating. “These Boots Are Made for Walking” display even has a downloadable brochure with a location map and information about how to call up an audio program telling about the boots.

Now if you’re going to wear cowboy boots, you might as well have a horse, right? Travel to Rochester, NY, where in 2001, collaboration between local public relations & advertising firm Dixon Schwabl and Genessee Brewery used the horse theme to engage the community and showcase the talents of local artists by organizing sponsorships of 150+ life-sized, fiberglass horse statues. Once the project was done, the horses were auctioned off and the money raised went to various local charities. But twenty-one years later, some of the horses are still seen around the area. Horses on Parade: Where are They Now? — emily malkowski is one website with more information about the remaining horses and their background stories.

According to some, the idea that started an apparent copycat frenzy in the US was COWS ON PARADE in downtown Chicago, begun in 1999 with over three hundred fiberglass bovines let loose across the city with every imaginable theme painted on their backsides. And that, according to business owner Peter Hanig, was because of a “cow parade” he had seen in Zurich, Switzerland while on family vacation. Though not on permanent display, the cows are rounded up every ten years or so and corralled again for tourists’ pleasure. https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-cows-on-parade-20-year-anniversary-ttd-0701-20190628-zjz2qwbfrncgnlvaioqdyqtkae-story.html. New York also does a Cows on Parade, the last one being in 2021, again the proceeds going to charities in the five boroughs, but the cows aren’t on permanent display.

Probably the most weird “on parade” I came across was the “superlambanana” creatures in Liverpool, England. The original Superlambanana is a large yellow statue in Liverpool created in 1998 which has become somewhat the icon of Liverpool. The mini Superlambananas were sponsored by local businesses and painted by area artists and displayed in 2008 before being auctioned off to raise money for various charities.

There appears to be three different viewpoints with regard to “Art on Parade” projects. Some, like the Cheyenne boots, are a permanent part of the city, promoting tourism. Others began as city promotions, like Rochester’s horses, but after being auctioned off are still part of the city landscape, though scattered and not always catalogued. And third, we have those like the cows and superlambanana that were created, displayed and enjoyed, then auctioned off and either never heard from again or only brought out every ten or more years.

Personally I like the permanent displays the best. After all, if you want people to visit because you have a unique attraction, that attraction needs to always be available. Such is the display of hot air balloons in Indianola, Iowa. Though not as many or as large as some, these art sculptures tell a story. Originally begun as a money raising project for the annual National Balloon Classic, the majority of them can be found in front of the National Balloon Museum, National Balloon Museum | Indianola, Iowa, a fun and interesting place to visit. Others, such as the Crouse Café balloon, can be found in front of the business.

Yet another “on parade” are the Jayhawks in Lawrence, KS, home of the University of Kansas Jayhawks. Jayhawks on Parade offers a fun scavenger hunt around Lawrence | Arts & Culture | kansan.com These sculptures began as an event a decade ago that was to last five months, but many of the original thirty Jayhawks can still be seen around Lawrence and the KU campus.  Some have flown away with KU supporters as far away as California.

Does your town have an “on parade” art exhibit that highlights something unique about its history or people? If it doesn’t but you think it should, what would you use as the base for the art – lighthouses, salmon, pigs? The possibilities are endless. I think I would choose books; perhaps ten foot tall books decorated to portray local authors or history. Maybe an open book designed like a park bench but with a cover displaying local items of interest. Whoops, that’s been done. With Bright Benches, London Shows Off Its Love Of Books : The Two-Way : NPR.

Still, wouldn’t it be fun to have benches scattered around town for people to sit on and reflect about what makes your town so special and how happy they are to be there?

All Best Wishes,

Barb

http://www.authorsden.com/barbarajbaldwin

https://bookswelove.net/baldwin-barbara/

 

 

 

 

Everyone's Irish Today - Parades

Today – Everyone is Irish.

 

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all. Today is the day of parades, pipers and dancers. It’s also Still under the sign of Pisces, the Dreamer. I have yet to write a story geared strictly to the Pisces Character, but two will be coming in the future. But I’ll throw in a cover or two of several of my books. Then I’ll talk about the parades I know about.

 

 

 

I live not far from New York City where they have a massive St. Patrick’s Day parade.

The New York City St. Patrick’s Parade is the oldest and largest St. Patrick’s Day Parade in the world. The first parade was held on March 17, 1762 — fourteen years before the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The parade is held annually on March 17th* at precisely 11:00 AM in honor of St. Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland and of the Archdiocese of New York. The parade route goes up Fifth Avenue beginning at East 44th Street and ending at East 79th Street. Approximately 150,000 people march in the parade which draws about 2 million spectators.

From its earliest days, right up to the present, the NYC St. Patrick’s Day Parade has been run entirely by volunteers, many of whom come from generations of families dedicated to the organization of the parade. It takes months of preparation and countless hours to run the world’s oldest and largest parade. We could not do it without the commitment of these great women and men.

The NYC Saint Patrick’s Day Parade is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

Just around the corner from where I live, the town of Pearl River has a St. Patrick’s Day parade. There are also dancers and other events taking place.

Rockland County's Saint Patrick's Day Parade began back in March 1963. And since it's inception to the present, the Parade is the second LARGEST parade in New York State.Sunday March 18nd, 2018_

 The Rockland County Ancient Order of Hibernians St. Patrick’s Parade Pearl River will be taking place in Pearl River on Sunday March 18, 2018 at 1:30 PM Rain or Shine.  

 The parade leaves from the Pfizer parking lot, turning east onto E Crooked Hill Road, turning south onto N. Middletown Rd, turning west onto E Central Ave turning south onto South Main Street, and ending in the area of the Pearl River Post Office.  Roads in the Pearl River area are subject to closure up to 1 hour prior to the start of the parade. On street parking is available in the Pearl River area, but please check for any full time or temporary parking restrictions for that roadway prior to leaving your car.  Any parked vehicles that are found to impede emergency response or endanger public safety are subject to be ticketed and towed. Please ensure that you park properly and legally. Handicapped parking will be available in the Parking Lot of the Key Bank at 93 N. Middletown Road and the Municipal Parking Lot at the corner of N. William St and E Washington Ave. Please be reminded, The Town of Orangetown Town Code Local Law

No. 2 Chapter 10 states: Open bottles or containers in which there is an alcoholic beverage are prohibited by law.

 

There is one more parade I know a bit about since my daughter lives in Savannah.

 

The Parade will be held Rain or Shine!!

The St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Savannah will take place on March 17^th and will begin promptly at 10:15 AM.  Please see the parade map for the route of the parade or the link for Bleacher Seating for further information.  The schedule of events also lists several locations and times for all other events associated with St. Patrick’s Day in Savannah.  Please view the calendar for this information and we hope you can join us.  See you on St. Patrick’s Day.

My son-in-law says it’s a real holiday. They have viewing stands and also a magazine.

 

So that’s my bit about  St. Patrick’s Day Parades. If you know of others drop a note and tell me about them.