Art For Art's Sake

I'm not a big fan of Western art, however I think I'm self actualized enough to respect any artist for the sake of the art. The city of Great Falls started a public art project two years ago. The project is called The Buffalo Hunt and has two purposes: 1) to create a public art project with broad community appeal and involvement and 2) to endow funds for the museum's education, acquisition and exhibit programs.

The museum commissioned a local sculptor who designed a large scale buffalo that was then sent to a company to be made into 26 fiberglass models. Then the museum had local artists paint the buffalo and they were displayed at various businesses around the city. The businesses sponsored their own buffalo, paying for the model itself and supplies for the artists. The buffalo were then auctioned off on September 10th and grossed nearly $500,000!

I chose a few of our family favorites, but if you'd like to see all of the buffalo and calves go to http://www.cmrussell.org/buffalohunt/index.html.

My family has really enjoyed driving around town and seeing our buffalo friends. Like I said, I'm not a big fan of Western art, but I do appreciate art in general and am proud that my city is doing what it can to support local artists.