Cow Fun: Calgary meets Arnhem!
Who knew Calgary, Canada and Arnhem, Netherlands are both cow towns and could be sister cities in the year 2000. I certainly didn’t, until a good friend said she had two books for me. Turns out one was on the “CowParade” in Arnhem and the other Calgary’s “Udderly Art: Colourful Cows For Calgary.” Though familiar with the latter as the Calgary Downtown Association was instrumental in the organizing what turned out to be perhaps Calgary’s biggest and best public art project, when I was its Executive Director. But I had never heard of the Arnhem’s Koeienparade project (CowParade).
Arnhem’s CowParade in 2000 as part of the world's largest public art event where local artists painted life-sized fiberglass cow statues placed in public spaces in 75 cities around the world including Calgary.
Note: In subsequent years, other cities did similar projects but with different animals. For example, Winnipeg did polar bears, Toronto did moose, Cincinnati did pigs, Lexington did horses, Berlin did bears and Vancouver did orca whales.
Tale of Two Cities
Arnhem, the vibrant capital city of the Gelderland province in the eastern part of the Netherlands, on the banks for the Lower Rhine River near the German border. It is home to roughly 160,000 residents and famous for its lush parks, fashion scene and WWII history.
The Arnhem parade had 28 life-size cows installed around its downtown, mainly in the park along the river. They did not auction them off as other cities did, so you can still find some of them permanently installed next to buildings and public spaces.
Side Note: Back in the late ‘90s (just before the CowParade) I visited Arnhem as my sister married a man from there. As for my friend who gave me the book, she was in Arhem for a Health Canada trip and bought the CowParade book to share with family and friends who loved Calgary’s cows. It is a small world.
Calgary
Calgary the energy capital of Canada, is located next to the Rocky Mountains at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow Rivers. It has a population of 1,600,000 people and is home to 7,000 parks and green spaces, a vibrant arts and cultural scene and the world famous Calgary Stampede.
The Calgary Udderly art project consisted of 125 cows and raised $1.2 million for charities when they were auctioned off at the end of the summer.
Koeienparade (Cow Parade) meets Udderly Art
The photos below from the two books create a virtual tour of two cow projects. Can you tell which ones are from Arnhem and those from Calgary?
Calgary’s Best Public Art Program
The Udderly Art: Colourful Cows for Calgary was arguably the most successful public art program in the city’s history. Why? Because it captured the public’s imagination. After just a few weeks of being installed downtown workers were flocking at lunch hour to see the cows. It was a hot topic in coffee and lunch rooms as to which one was the best. Suburban families were also coming downtown on the weekend to see the cows, often bringing visiting family and friends. This public art project attracted 1,000s of people of all ages and backgrounds to come downtown on their own to see the grazing (amazing) herd of cows. What other public art project has done that?
BUMP mural project has made Calgary’s City Centre an outdoor art gallery.
Yes, BUMP (Beltline Urban Mural Project) is great, attracting international and local muralist to create some wonderful murals in our City Center. Currently, there are 165+ murals with more being completed this summer. And they have done a great job in organizing tours, conference and a weekend festival, but what made the Udderly Art project unique was how it motivated so many people to come see the cows on their own. Perhaps one of the reasons was because it was a temporary exhibition, everyone knew that once the summer was over, so was the exhibition.
Lesson Learned: Perhaps we need to move our public art around, rather than have it in just one place forever, where it become just a part of the everyday urban landscape.
Udderly Art: Colourful Cows for Calgary installation at the Centennial Parkades +15 level.
Last Word
An indoor legacy to Calgary’s “Udderly Art: Colourful Cows For Calgary” can be found on the second floor of the Centennial Parkade building at the corner of 9th Ave and 5th St SW. Not only is there a dozen or so cows, but there are extensive information panels that document the event and photos of all 125 cows, It is a fun stop along Calgary’s 16-km elevated indoor walkway called the Plus 15 (it is 15 feet above ground). I understand there are still a few cow remaining today in Arnhem but no organized legacy.
