Art Cows @ LJM and public campaign for art literacy

Wouldn't it be neat if our school campus also had some public art? I can picture awe-inspiring sculptures in our quad, an art cow here and there...

More on the art cows: "The great concept of cows, literacy, and art are now on display.  Cows on Parade are also reaching all over the coast, from Portland to Chicago to Atlanta to Europe; all over these colorful cows are expressing art, culture, and style.  Enjoy the cows and the literacy they bring from all over the world.  As a creative outlet, these cows depict the beautiful concepts of different topics, whether they be by country, visual depictions, or common day occurrences, such as the milkman…or in this case…milkcow, the literacy of the cows on parade is truly inspiration and innovative." from Literacy Alive blog

Idea in the Air: Obtain 1-5 fiberglass cows or other animals to start our own campaign to bring awareness to the importance of art in our schools and how art can inspire everyone!
Execution: If we can get 5 cows we assign each grade a cow to decorate with the guidance of an artist (the artist will come up with the artistic concept for the cow and teach the kids how to do the art). The cow or cows will then be publicly displayed (I'm thinking Lowe's or Home Depot, whoever we can get to sponsor the cow) along with a plaque that tells about our project.

So, are you inspired? I hope so! I am! 

Here's what is needed to make this idea-in-the-air become an idea-on-the-ground:

1. We need some parents who have a talent for asking for things and getting what they want (with Charm, that is) to contact businesses who sell these fiberglass cows or animals (they don't need to be cows and they don't all need to be the same animal) to donate one to us. We'd be happy to provide a 'Sponsored/donated by" on the plaque to the business. Or, if we are unable to get a donation, then we'll need to shop for the best bargain...
2. We need other parents who are charming to get local businesses to sponsor a cow. The cost to sponsor will be more than the cost of the cow (of course, depending on what the cost is if we have to purchase). I'm thinking big-box stores like Home Depot, Lowe's and other high-visibility locations (perhaps the mall?) Most likely a business who sponsors a cow will also get to have a cow at their location for the duration of this campaign. 
3. Need marketing and PR people - to write press releases and contact local and other media for publicity once we have obtained the cows. (Let's build up some buzz!)
4. We need the help of artistic parents who would like to come up with art concepts for the cows. Need inspiration? See what others have done The concepts would need to be awesome and inspiring, colorful, eye-catching and be able to be executed by students with the help of adults.
5. We need the help of parents to work on the cows with the students and help make it look good by teaching and guiding students.
6. We need parents to help finish the cows...meaning apply varathane or whatever protectant on the finished cow.
7. We need parents to volunteer to deliver the cows to their destination. I say we make it an event...invite the school/families out to see the cows get loaded on to pick up trucks which would form a convoy and drive through town in parade fashion, each truck going to each of the locations together to drop off one cow at a time. Let's make a spectacle of it! How cool that would be to watch! 
8. We need someone to build platforms for the cows on display. The platforms would need to be on hidden wheels that are lockable. And figure out how to secure the cow to the platform so it doesn't get stolen. 
9. We need plaques made to explain the project on display. So, it would be great if we knew someone who could make a plaque for free...anyone? "Free" will get the business' name on the plaque.
10. We need people to "foster a cow" and to check on it throughout the week-long (or whatever) campaign. Make sure it's not being vandalized, that it's taken care of...etc. 
11. On high traffic days, we could have school representatives, i.e. parents at the cow's location to talk about the project and hand out little flyers and asking for donations to our Art Attack fund.
12. When the campaign is over, we need volunteers to round 'em up! If a business wanted to keep the cow for a longer time, that would be great...or we could even rotate locations throughout a month-long time period (whatever we decide is the length of the campaign).
13. If the cows are brought back to our school, we would have them on display on campus.
14. IDEA!! As part of the campaign, we could promote 'Adopt A Cow' - We could ask the business (again, I'm picturing Lowe's in this scenario) if they wanted to adopt the cow and it would stay on premises for the school year. Adoption fee would be determined - perhaps $1000? $2000? It would be great public relations for the business and great publicity for our Art Attacks and awareness for the importance of art in schools.

I think that's all I can think of for the moment...so you can see that we could use A LOT of people to make this project happen. Not just a handful of the same volunteers...everyone can (and should!) get involved! This would be a great lesson to show you kids how people working together can make amazing things happen! 

If you are interested in helping out in any way, please contact us!

Feel free to post your suggestions below (if you have constructive criticism that will help tweak the details, we'd love to hear them! The more minds the merrier!) Comments are moderated to prevent spam so your comments may not show up right away. Tell us how you can help! (But please don't post your contact info as this is public - use our contact form to contact us.)