There is a horse in the state Capitol
Scout, a 6-foot-tall fiberglass pinto horse that stood watch in John Hickenlooper’s office while he was Denver mayor, was carried through city streets Tuesday by staff from Colorado Creative Industries (slideshow) to his new home at the state Capitol, where he will continue his watch over now-Gov. Hickenlooper. The horse, on loan from the city, was originally part of the artwork “The Yearling,” by artist Donald Lipski, and stood on a 21-foot-tall chair on the lawn at Denver’s Central Library downtown. (Photo by Joe Amon, The Denver Post)
A more-resilient, bronze Scout was cast in 2008 to replace the weathered resin original at Denver institution Ray Fedde’s bronze foundry, with closed last year. At 74, Fedde said farewell to Fedde Bronze Works after having made more than 10,000 pieces for over 1,300 clients over a period of about 40 years.
Recasting the horse, which stands atop a 21-foot-tall red steel chair, was part of a refresh that included repainting the chair in preparation for Denver’s moment in the spotlight as it played host to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. This refresh even caught the attention of the New York Times. “The Yearling” was commissioned for a Manhattan elementary school but after spending a year in Central Park it came home to Denver in 1998, where, what the Times calls its “deeply cockeyed vision” has been adopted as purely Coloradan. (Photo by RJ Sangosti, The Denver Post)
Scout and “The Yearling” aren’t alone, either — much of Colorado’s art is hard to miss. In a 2006 story, Dana Coffield pulled together a roundup of Denver’s and the state’s most prominent big art, including Lawrence Argent’s 40-foot-tall blue bear sneaking a peek inside the Convention Center.
A horse of a different color: Denver’s current most-controversial art piece numbers among the big ones, as well. The 32-foot-tall, blue-with-red-eyes “Mustang,” by Luis Jimenez, stands at Denver International Airport, rearing in defiance just south of the main terminal. Despite loudly-voiced negative sentiment, the statue will maintain its quiet vigil until at least 2013.
Compiled by Daniel J. Schneider, The Denver Post
