It has been a long time since cows were brought to graze on the Boston Common. But this summer, life-size, painted cow sculptures have popped up around the Common, throughout the city, and even as far away as Polar Park in Worcester.
These public art displays are known as CowParade. Since 1999, CowParade’s life-size cow sculptures have been painted by local artists and displayed in cities around the world for residents and tourists to visit. The cows are also sold to benefit local nonprofits.
For the 75th anniversary of The Jimmy Fund, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute held its own CowParade with 75 bovines this summer to raise money for cancer research and treatment. The remaining herd of cows are available via auction starting today for businesses and individuals to bid on.
Turning pain into art
One of the local artists involved in the CowParade this year is Richard Banfield. From 2005 to 2019 Banfield was the founder and CEO of Fresh Tilled Soil. During his time helming the company, he worked on website and digital product design projects for clients like Microsoft, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Keurig and Harvard University.
In his last few years at the company, Banfield’s wife Kristy was diagnosed with cancer. Banfield explained that Kristy had a BRCA2 gene mutation, which meant she had an increased risk for developing certain types of cancers. Kristy battled breast cancer into remission, and then was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. After five years, Kristy passed away on January 4, 2022.
During this time, Banfield sold Fresh Tilled Soil and focused his attention on supporting Kristy and the son they shared, James. Banfield also found himself being drawn toward art as a form of solace.
“I had taken a massive hiatus from art. I hadn’t done any art since I was a young man. I had been an executive running a company,” Banfield said.
“I started painting peonies initially which were a symbol of what I called antifragility because they came back every year bolder and brighter than the year before. And those became Kristy and my symbol for her roller coaster ride.”
Banfield also painted a “giant boob,” a tongue-in-cheek reference to breast cancer, which was auctioned at an event hosted by the Pan Mass Challenge to support cancer research.
When the opportunity arose to paint a cow for the CowParade earlier this year, Banfield took this idea and transferred it to his sculpture. “The Giant Boob Cow” is located on the Boston Common near the Park Street MBTA station.
“We wanted people to stop and look at it and go, what is this all about? Why’s it called this?” Banfield said.
Banfield also painted a second cow for the Pan Mass Challenge that represented the journey cyclists embark on during this fundraiser for Dana-Farber.
Banfield, who now splits his time between being an artist and advisor for C-level executives, continues to use his art to raise money for cancer research. Art also remains a personal way to process pain and connect with others.
“We don’t really think about art or poetry or anything until something happens. Until you lose somebody you love. Your heart breaks. You’re lonely. You feel like you’re the only person who’s ever felt this pain ever in your life,” Banfield said. “And then suddenly you see somebody’s poem, or read somebody’s story or you see their art and you go, oh, I’m not alone. There are others like me.”
Auctioning off the herd
Maryann Zschau, associate director of event fundraising for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and The Jimmy Fund, said this is the second time they’ve hosted a CowParade. In 2006 they raised about $1 million through the CowParade. This year, they’re aiming to beat that total.
Zschau commissioned 60 artists from different backgrounds to paint this year’s cows. She said there were artists from all six New England states, and the artists ranged in age from 12 to 82. About 25% of the artists belonged to the BIPOC community.
VDA Inc. in Somerville donated space for artists to come and paint their cows between January and April. Each artist received $1,000 for their work, but Zschau the artists mainly participated to support The Jimmy Fund. Most of the artists also had a personal connection to cancer, if not Dana-Farber itself.
Zschau said there are still a few days to bid on the remaining members of the herd, which are on display until September 4.
“Every cow purchase is a constant remembrance that you took part in both the research and the treatment of cancer at Dana-Farber,” Zschau said.
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