The Cotton Bowl’s ArtPrize Moment: Giant Mascots Made of Tires

Remember when Dallas was going to host an expansion of ArtPrize?

The three-year agreement was set to begin in 2016, but ArtPrize Dallas was cancelled because of funding and some who "saw the concept as threatening to the status quo."

It seems Dallas is having second thoughts after introducing two ArtPrize-like sculptures made out of tires.

The Cotton Bowl features Western Michigan University vs. Wisconsin. The game will take place on January 2 at 1pm EST at AT&T Stadium in Arlington just down the road from Dallas.

Goodyear is the title sponsor. They commissioned artist Blake McFarland to create tire sculptures of each school's mascot. McFarland started his career as an artist as a painter. Later he was inspired by tires and began creating sculptures.

ArtPrize in Grand Rapids is no stranger to tires as a medium. Chakaia Booker's entry at the Calder Plaza in 2009 is probably the most famous. Booker is a New York-based internationally known artist.

The Cotton Bowl tire sculptures are six feet tall and weigh 400 pounds.