Summer 2004 will see at least one hundred bovines grazing the streets and parks of Manchester, as CowParade returns to England.

The cows that brought a smile to the face of Londoners in the summer of 2002 have returned from the streets of Las Vegas, Auckland, Brussels, Dublin and Pennsylvania to settle in Manchester from June to September this year.

CowParade is the world's largest public art event. The bovine sculptures first appeared in Chicago in 1999 and while the sculptures remain the same, each city's artists are challenged by the art from past events, inspired by the cultural influences of their respective cities, and moved by their own interpretation of the cow as an art object.

But CowParade is not meant to be high art. It is first and foremost a public art exhibit that is accessible to everyone. CowParade also makes a considerable contribution to charity, with an auction at the conclusion of each event.

The gala auction in Manchester in October 2004 will see a number of the cows sold with proceeds benefiting Manchester Kids who provide funding for children's and young people's projects throughout the Greater Manchester Region. See Box