THE HORSE PROJECT
PORTLAND, OREGON
Started September 24, 2005

The sidewalks of Portland are peppered with metal rings. Mysterious to many, they actually date back to the early 1900's
when citizens fastened their horses and carts to the rings. The city of Portland continues the practice to this day of preserving
and maintaining rings citywide. Even when a new sidewalk is built, rings are added.

I fell in love with the rings as a child in the late 70's. I always pictured a time when horse carriages would have filled the streets
instead of cars. Later in life when I started thinking about public art, it occurred to me to fasten toy horses to the rings. The
project immediately took off and got notice around the city. Before long the project was being discussed on the local news and
even media outlets like the Los angeles Times.

A small group of people in Portland took a special interest and launched a horse project web site, which does a great job of
introducing the project and inviting participation.

The project lives on. To continue building community and in support of participation, there is also a Facebook page where
anyone can post their own horse pictures and share stories.

Lastly, here's one additional link to the original images from when the horse project began.