CowParade moo-ves to SA
6 July 2004
CowParade, an extraordinary public art display that has stampeded through 20 major cities worldwide, has moo-ved to South Africa to celebrate 10 years of freedom, showcase local artistic ingenuity, boost tourism and raise funds for the Childhood Cancer Foundation South Africa.
CowParade's zany collection of life-size fibreglass cows, strikingly decorated and painted by artists from each host country, is now the world's largest public art event.
The event's first public painting in South Africa is taking place in Johannesburg this week. Until 12 July, in front of Tinker Town on Rosebank's busy Jan Smuts Avenue and Bolton Road intersection, local artists Justice Jimmy Setumane Mokwena, Diana Hyslop and Stephen Maqhashela will be painting three beautiful bovines.
South African artists, crafters, designers, architects and art students were invited to submit designs for the unpainted bovines. Successful applicants are being commissioned to create
their designs on over 100 cows, with R10 000 paid for each design selected.
These special cows will join the official CowParade herd, and will be unveiled in Johannesburg and Durban in September and in Cape Town over the festive season. The cows will become part of each city's landscape, grazing individually and in small herds in areas where people live, work, shop and play. The exhibition will continue until March 2005.
Globe trotters
From Chicago and New York in 1999 and 2000 to Kansas City and Houston in 2001 and London in 2002, CowParade has caught the imagination of the world, continually evolving in size and quality. The project began in Zurich, Switzerland in 1998, drawing more than a million visitors to the city.
The cows have become sought-after collectables: Elton John, Oprah Winfrey, the Queen of Jordan, Lord Heseltine and South Africa's Evita Bezuidenhout are among those who now own cows, with the highest price paid for a
cow so far being US$148 000 bid at a recent Sotheby's auction.
While the cow sculptures remain the same, each city's artists are challenged by the art from previous events, inspired by the cultural influences of their own cities, and moved by their own interpretation of the cow as art object.
The event has become a coveted competition for the best and the brightest artists around the world. Famous artists such as Peter Max, Patrick Hughes and David Lynch have all shared their talent as part of CowParade.
At the same time, it is a light-hearted exhibition giving local artists, from the celebrated to the unknown, a chance to showcase their talents.
First three SA artists 'not cowed'
The three South African artists to tackle the first cows are thrilled with the challenge. Diane Hyslop - who has worked for Marvel Comics and in the photographic and film industries - became involved in fine art full-time in 1989, and has hosted a
number of solo exhibitions in this country as well as in America.
"Somewhere between heaven and earth, between being bound and being free, lies a vast landscape of imagining", says Hyslop. "In many senses I think artists are like shamans. I am interested in spiritual states of being. So I try, in my work, to reach a state somewhere in between consciousness and sub-consciousness. When I make pieces, a lot of them just come straight out. It's not like I think about them."
Sculptor Stephen Maqhashela, one of the Bag Factory's permanent artists, has exhibited extensively both locally and internationally.
Justice Jimmy Setumane Mokwena is a rising young star who does printmaking, painting and performance work. Mokwena studied Fine Art at the Pretoria Technikon, and has a printmaking exhibition scheduled for the Johannesburg Art Gallery in November.
CowParade is taking place in one of Johannesburg’s hippest areas, where some of the city's leading galleries are only
a short walk away. The cows will be painted in front of three unique Rosebank shops: Light Years, Haus House and Tinker Town.
Local companies are encouraged to sponsor a cow or a herd, and can commission their own artist to really make an impression. The JSE's udderly bullish soccer cow "Ama moo moo", commisioned to celebrate South Africa's successful 2010 World Cup soccer bid, has been the focus of much attention in its position in the foyer of the Johannesburg Securities Exchange in Sandton.
Public auction, Internet auction
The grande finale to CowParade South Africa will be a public auction (conducted by Stephan Welz/ Sothebys) and an Internet auction of the cows, aimed at both local buyers and international collectors.
The auctions will be held in May 2005, with all moo-lah raised benefiting the Childhood Cancer Foundation South Africa (Choc), which helps children suffering from all varieties of cancer or life-threatening blood
disorders.
"The funds that are raised for Choc will save lives and help many South African children who are diagnosed as having life-threatening illnesses", says Julian Cutland, the national chairperson of Choc, which, with help from different institutions, bought the CowParade licence for South Africa.
Says American CowParade event organiser Peter Hanig: "Art is about breaking down barriers. It gets people to feel, to think, to react.
"So when you come across life-sized cow sculptures that have been covered in mirrors or gumdrops, cows that have been painted with elaborate themes or transformed into something else entirely, you can't help but stop and think about what it means. All your preconceived ideas go out the window.
"Suddenly people see that art can be fun and that art can be interesting to everyone, not just people who frequent museums."
For more information, visit CowParade.net.
SouthAfrica.info reporter
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