Campus News

Bowman is the Birthday Boy

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 16, 2013) — Bet you’ve never been invited to a birthday party for a sculpture. Well, now you have.

  

We know it’s hard to believe (they grow up so fast these days), but the University of Kentucky’s newest celebrity statue is turning 1 this month. To celebrate, all UK faculty, staff and students are invited to a “birthday” celebration honoring Bowman, the Wildcat sculpture, from noon to 2 p.m. Thursday, April 18, at Wildcat Alumni Plaza across from Memorial Coliseum on Avenue of Champions. This special event will celebrate the one-year anniversary of Bowman’s unveiling as a campus landmark.

Birthday cake and refreshments will be served. Attendees are asked to bring a camera to take pictures with the birthday cat and check out the personalized brick pavers that make the plaza UK’s tradition of legacy.

Bowman, a 7 foot tall, 9 foot long intricately detailed bronze Wildcat sculpture, a project spearheaded by the UK Alumni Association, was unveiled to the university community April 20, 2012. Bowman’s location on Wildcat Alumni Plaza is meant to serve as a gathering place for students, alumni and friends of the university as well as a friendly ambassador to campus visitors. In the fall of 2012, UK students voted to name the sculpture Bowman in honor of John Bowman, a lawyer and educator in 19th century Kentucky, who was the founder of what is now the University of Kentucky.  

For more information about Wildcat Alumni Plaza, visit www.ukalumni.net/wildcatalumniplaza or follow Bowman on Twitter at www.twitter.com/wildcatbowman