17 $2,000 donations sought for project

Donations for the proposed cowboy and horse bronze for downtown Orland are being accepted by the Orland Arts Commission.

The body is seeking $2,000 from 17 individuals, groups or businesses to complete the project estimated to cost $34,000.

"We have been collecting some donations through personal contact," Arts Commissioner Rae Turnbull said, "but we are now in a donation drive."

The 6-foot-tall bronze will be created by Bay area sculptor Carl Ciliax from a smaller version he made previously.

Ciliax and his partner Beverly Wilson exhibited their work at the Orland Art Center last year and offered to do this project at a reduced cost since most sculptures of this size run $50,000 to $60,000, Turnbull said.

Her husband, Arts Commissioner George Turnbull, is to oversee the project until the bronze is put up on Fourth Street facing Highway 32.

The commission's goal is to attract visitors to downtown Orland when they see the bronze while driving by, she said. It also fits into the downtown improvement district plans of drawing tourists into the city to shop.

It is titled "Sagebrush and Silence" and features a cowboy sitting on a stockhorse.

The foundry selected to do the bronze is Artworks of Berkeley, one of the finest foundries in the state, Turnbull said.

Early donations are needed to start the project since materials need to be purchased before it can begin, she added.

"If we receive enough 'early' donations, there is an outside chance that the sculpture can be in its place, on its pedestal, with lights on at night by Christmas," Turnbull said in a statement.

Each donor's name will be inscribed on a plaque at the base of the bronze.

It will be funded entirely with community donations, she added, as were other projects sponsored by the Arts Commission.

George Turnbull also volunteered and oversaw earlier projects like the gazebo in Library Park, the city's entry sign and the promenade lights in the park near Orland Library.

Donors may make their checks out to the city of Orland and write on the check the money is for Arts Commission Bronze Public Art project, Turnbull said.

They can be mailed to City Hall at 815 Fourth St., Orland, CA 95963.

Contact Rick Longley at 934-6800 or rlongley@tcnpress.com.