Group Continues to Seek Arts Donor

The Thousand Oaks Alliance for the Arts is not giving up on finding a donor to pay for a horse sculpture near the Civic Arts Plaza.

The organization, a fund-raising arm of the cultural center, last week asked the city for an extension to keep the piece at the Civic Arts Plaza through the end of June. Fund-raisers placed the work near the Fred Kavli Theatre six months ago and had hoped to have a donor by the end of April.

Now they believe it will take at least a year, Executive Director Patricia Moore said.

“When you’re talking about a gift that big, people tend to want to mull it over,” Moore said. “Usually, people who give these kinds of major gifts have been thinking about it for a while, and a year is usually not uncommon for them to think about it.”

The sculpture, made by Los Angeles-based sculptor David Huenergardt, is one of three horses that will make up the “Running Free” piece. Stretching 48 feet and weighing 15,000 pounds, the completed piece would probably sit either on top of the reflecting pool next to the theater or on the lawn in front of the Civic Arts Plaza.

To complete the sculpture, the alliance requires a $1-million donation. The money would be used to pay the costs of creating the remaining two horses and to subsidize future performances through the alliance’s endowment fund, Moore said.

With Wynonna Judd, Olivia Newton-John and the Beach Boys scheduled to perform at the Fred Kavli Theatre in May, Moore hopes some big spenders might be attend and see the sculpture.

Thus far, the alliance has spent about $2,000 to promote the sculpture. The lack of takers has not discouraged Moore.

“I think it’s really striking and would be a really nice addition to the arts plaza,” she said. “It brings life to this place and is a real drawing card.”