Butter Sculpting goes Live in Dairy Building at Fair « Back

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The butter cow has been a tradition at the Illinois State Fair since 1922, and in recent years, sculptor Sharon BuMann has been carving the exhibit so that it’s ready to unveil before the fair opens.  But this year, visitors will be able to see BuMann at work as she puts the final touches on the butter cow sculpture during the fair’s first two days, August 11 and 12.

And just in case you fancy yourself an artist, the Dairy Building also provides visitors with Facebook accounts access to “Butter-Fy” themselves.  A kiosk in the building lets fair-goers access the “Butter-fy Yourself” Facebook application available at http://apps.facebook.com/butterfy, turning a profile picture into a buttery personality.  Personalities include Dairy Princess, Butter Hippie, Butter Cow, Butter Liberty, Butter Bouffant and Butter Up.  It also allows users to put their new photo on a virtual postcard from the Illinois State Fair.  

Nearby, BuMann’s work will incorporate the fair’s theme of “We’ve got a good thing Growing” into the butter cow display.  Some highlights from past years’ butter cow displays include:

• 2007 – A wise owl sits in a tree representing the “Celebrate and Educate” theme.  This was also the year the butter cow display moved from the south wall of the Dairy Building to its new location in the circular revolving display.
• 2008 – A family of skunks made an appearance for “A Family Tradition” theme.
• 2009 – A young Abe Lincoln was included for the “An-All American Fair” theme.
• 2010 – A cow stood in a corn field to highlight the “Cream of the Crop” theme.

BuMann’s own favorite butter cow sculpture from the Illinois State Fair was her 2006 masterpiece.  It incorporated a new calf and kitten exchanging looks.  This piece is also near and dear to BuMann’s heart as it was also dedicated to her late husband.

BuMann has been carving butter for 16 years.  Her start began when the New York State Fair was looking for a new butter sculptor.  Her website explains, “I sent in my credentials, created a small sample piece and the rest is history.” 

Attractions at the Dairy Building are sponsored by Midwest Dairy Association on behalf of the dairy farmers of Illinois.  The Dairy Building is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Kids’ games end at 6 p.m.

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Midwest Dairy Association is a non-profit organization funded by dairy farmers to build demand for dairy products through integrated marketing, nutrition education and research. Midwest Dairy is funded by checkoff dollars from dairy farmers in a 10-state region, including Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. For more information, visit www.midwestdairy.com. Follow us on Twitter and find us on Facebook at Midwest Dairy.