Downstream Drifters - OCCC - Oklahoma City, OK - Figurative Public Sculpture on Waymarking.com

Oklahoma City Community College is located in the southwest part of Oklahoma City. In front of its main building is this unique sculpture. It consists of four pieces (A horse and rider and three longhorn steer). The sculptures are located in an elevated two-tiered waterfall fountain simulating one of Oklahoma's rivers, with a difficult and dangerous water crossing in the days of cattle drives. The top portion of the four figures rise above the water and give the impression of being in deep river water. The figures are life-sized with their heads about the same height as the viewer. The many-faceted process of creating these sculptures took eight months.

The artist is John Rule, whose studio is located in Minco, Oklahoma. He is a well-known saddle maker and sculptor. The piece was funded by Jack Turner, a cattleman and friend of the artist.

A granite monument nearby reads:

Downstream Drifters celebrates the pioneer spirit of the American
West. The piece is composed of four life-sized bronze sculptures
depicting a treacherous water crossing on a cattle drive. When
rivers raged, cowboys would generally wait for the waters
to recede, however, when grass ran out or another herd of
cattle approached, the cowboys would attempt the dangerous
crossing.

All four sculptures are arranged in a large elevated fountain
inspired by elevated fountains found throughout Europe, giving
viewers a 360-degree view of the piece.

The three longhorn steers are almost fully submerged in water,
with a cowboy on his horse with a Houlihan loop to guide the
animals to safety.

John Rule, Artist
Downstream Drifters was made
possible by the generous donation of
Jack Turner
July 2018

The sculpture was set in July 2018 and dedicated on June 17, 2019.

Name or use 'Unknown' if not known: Downstream Drifters Figure Type: Combination of two figure types Artist Name or use 'Unknown' if not known: John Rule Date created or placed or use 'Unknown' if not known: 6/17/2019 Materials used: Bronze Location: Okla. City Community College

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Date Logged Log User Rating   06/19/2020 vulture1957 visited it 11/01/2019 The Snowdog visited it

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