David Govedare, artist behind the Wild Horse Monument, an iconic metalwork, has died

Pacific Northwest metal artist David Govedare died just before Thanksgiving.

David Govedare, the artist behind the famous Bloomsday runner statues in Spokane’s Riverfront Park and the Wild Horse Memorial in central Washington, died shortly before Thanksgiving.

In his life, Govedare made hundreds of metal sculptures. His works adorn buildings, parks and landscapes throughout the northwest.

Govedare’s longtime friend, musician Cary Fly, says the artist quickly came up with ideas for sculpture and design, but he has also thought about the long-term value of a piece and what it might look like in decades or hundreds of years.

“For a long time, like 20 years, he made anything out of steel and iron that would rust,” said Fly. “Kind of like the runners in the park. He’d go, these things have a lifespan of over 500 years. He says by then they’ll look really cool when they rust. And he wanted them to rust away, he was that guy because he says that’s what we do, we are born and then we grow and we kind of rust away. “

Fly says Govedare was known and worked with musicians and artists. In addition to creating personal pieces for his friends, he also designed album covers, including Fly’s seven albums.

Govedares pieces are almost entirely metalwork. They often portray people in nature, animals and the stars. He was often inspired by Native American cultural themes.

Govedare is best known in Washington for Grandfather Cuts Loose the Ponies, a sculpture of 15 horses on a cliff overlooking the Columbia River and I-90 in Grant County.

Karen Mobley, an artist who previously managed public art projects for the city of Spokane, says the horses are an example of the energy and style that pervades most of Govedare’s work.

“I think this piece is very successful at Vantage because it makes you feel like something is really happening up there on the hill,” said Mobley. “It works from close up, but also from a distance. It’s one thing that almost everyone who goes back and forth to Seattle looks up there to make sure it’s still there because it’s so impressive and has such a strong presence there. “

Govedare has been working on completing the sculpture since it was erected more than 30 years ago. His original design included a large metal basket that ran out of horses, but Govedare never had the means to build it.

Over the years he managed to make further improvements. With the help of friends, Govedare dug a path up the slope to make the piece more accessible.

In a 2018 interview with longtime friend Don Hamilton, Govedare said that regardless of the future of sculpture, it is important to him to preserve its ferocity.

“The sculpture itself is downright wild like the wild grass and sage, basalt rock and river,” said Govedare. “Everything here is untouched and left wild. This look has to be maintained over the generations. It has to keep that look. Everything we do to make it better for viewers in terms of their experience must be done with the consideration of keeping the site primitive. Because if people move up here and they see a souvenir shop, toilets and guard rails and all sorts of things, then the piece would immediately lose a lot of what it says about wild horses. “

Govedare grew up in California and moved to Spokane in the early 1970s.

His other well-known works include The Joy of Running Together in Riverfront Park, a public work of art he made in honor of Bloomsday, and the eagle and osprey feather sculptures that are found near downtown Coeur d’Alene stand.

Govedare also made many smaller pieces for public buildings in Washington, including schools in Spokane, Spokane County, and Colville.

David Govedare leaves behind a son, Forest, whom he looked after in metalworking. Govedare was 71 years old.

Hoping to keep his workshop and home in Chewelah, Govedare’s friends are working to raise funds to build the metal basket that would complete “Grandfather Unlocks the Ponies” in his honor.

Editor’s Note: The audio with the voice of David Govedare is courtesy of Don Hamilton and was an interview that was part of a series of interviews Govedare attended before his death in the hope of, “Grandfather Cuts Lose the Ponies “to finish.