Why Buy the Cow?

In case you fall in love with one of the bovines in La Jolla's Cow Parade (see below) and feel that you must have it, I have just learned that they will be auctioned at a fundraiser on Saturday, July 11 from 6pm - 10pm at the newly opened Robert Paine Scripps Forum at Scripps Institution for Oceanography. Proceeds will benefit The Zoological Society of San Diego and Rady Children’s Hospital.

Tickets for the event, priced at $150, went on sale today and are going fast. To get yours, go to http://www.cowparadelajolla.com/.

CowParade La Jolla is part of the world’s largest public art exhibition. CowParade has been held in 55 cities around the world since the first event in Chicago in 1999. More than 100 million people have attended CowParade events, which have raised more than $25 million for charities.

So get mooving and get your tickets.

Don’t Wait – the Cows Are Mooving On

“Whacky” is not a word usually used to describe La Jolla, but since the arrival of 40 artfully-painted full-size bovines – it’s the perfect descriptor. The colorful fiberglass cows are on display throughout the village and they make me – and a lot of other people – smile as we go about our business.

The mod moo moos were painted by local artists, and will eventually be auctioned to raise funds for Rady Children’s Hospital and the San Diego Zoo. In the meantime, you can go to http://www.cowparadelajolla.com/ for more information and a map of their locations.

My favorite, "Designer Genes" wears trendy denim pants, bright red lipstick, and yellow star earrings. Across the street, on the corner of Girard Avenue and Wall Street, “Digesting the News” appears to have eaten so much newspaper that his body is covered in black-and-white sections. In contrast, “Cowsablanca” has blue legs, a purple face, and a green, red, and orange body.

“Public art” often conjures up images of serious bronze figures that add gravitas to a site, but these fashionistas are whacky – and I love it.

CowParade was started in Chicago in 1999, and since then herds have turned up in 50 cities on six continents, including New York, Paris, London, and Mexico City.

La Jolla’s cows are mooving on June 15, and you really don’t want to miss seeing them. They’re udderly adorable.