Last Wednesday was the second Cow Parade Auction that was open to the public and took place at the Multiplaza Mall in Escazu.  Although a total of 72 cows were up for biding, only 27 were sold.

This was less than what the organizers had expected while bringing in $65,000 for the event.  This was due to a very small attendance that was probably because of that day’s rain as well as the time.  The event was announced to start at 6pm, which is when the majority of people are stuck in rush hour traffic.  Although the organizers decided to postpone the event for one more hour, the attendance was still not enough.

The auctioning took place in an open space inside the mall and allowed curious bystanders to enjoy the show.  The first cow to be sold was the colorful Vaca on the Go by artist Maria Jimena Navarro and was sold for $1,700.

As the event warmed up, observers and other participants would cheer when tight biddings for specific cows took place.  This was the case for the Vacurbana cow by artist Guillermo Porras.  Two bidders fought for this art piece until finally one of the two, an art gallery owner, won the auction at $4,600.  He later stated that he would have gone up to $10,000 if he had too.

A 70% of the proceeds from the Cow Parade auction will be donated to several different charities in Costa Rica.

Cow Parade organizers will use the remaining cows to tour specific towns for a week each and bring this unique art exhibition closer to those who were not able to go to San Jose.  The first town to receive the Cow Parade will be San Carlos in Costa Rica’s northern region.

Perez Zeledon in the South Pacific will follow as well as Cartago and Grecia.  For the month of November, residents from the areas of Limon, Quepos, Alajuela and Pococi will enjoy the event as well.