Horse & Rider Statue
Can be purchased at Information Desk in the Student Union
$17.95 + Tax for Students
$27.95 + Tax for Faculty, Staff, Public
This Horse and Rider statue is a replica of the Horse and Rider sculpture located in the newly renovated and expanded Texas Tech University Student Union Gathering Pavilion. The original piece was commissioned by the Student Union and created by American Sculptor Tom Otterness (b. 1952 in Wichita, Kansas). The smaller versions were specially made as a result of numerous requests for affordable models of the Horse and Rider.
The Horse and Rider is significant to Texas Tech University because it is loosely the artist’s rendition of our mascot, ‘The Masked Rider’. The tradition of the Masked Rider started as a dare in 1936 when an unidentified masked or ghost rider would circle the football field during home games. The Masked Rider became an official mascot in 1954.
The Brooklyn-based Otterness’ was also commissioned to create the Tornado of Ideas sculpture as part of the Texas Tech University Public Art Collection. This piece can be found in the west courtyard between the Student Union and the Library. Tom Otterness’ work is often described as whimsical and is collected worldwide by private collectors as well as prominent museums, such as the New York Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Guggenheim Museum, Brooklyn Museum of Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Dallas Museum of Art.
We hope you enjoy your beautiful piece and will treasure it as a reminder of Texas Tech University. Texas Tech, like all institutions of higher learning, is charged with teaching people how to think instead of what to think. Proponents of public art believe it is an essential component to meeting that challenge, as art can communicate—directly and indirectly—a tolerance for new ideas and diversity.