New York

NY State Fair Unveils 2022 Butter Sculpture

This year’s theme was "Refuel Her Greatness – Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Title IX"

Female athletes depicted through a butter sculpture with a chocolate milk bottle in the center
American Dairy Association North East

What to Know

  • The 54th Annual Butter Sculpture was revealed at The Great New York State Fair in Syracuse earlier this week.
  • This year’s theme was "Refuel Her Greatness – Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Title IX," with the new sculpture highlighting female athletes and features a progression of female athletes of different ages.
  • The massive 800 pound butter sculpture was constructed over a 10-day period by artists Jim Victor and Marie Pelton, and features color for the first time in 16 years.

Butter isn’t just for toasted bread.

The 54th Annual Butter Sculpture was revealed at The Great New York State Fair in Syracuse on Tuesday.

This year’s theme was "Refuel Her Greatness – Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Title IX," with the new sculpture highlighting female athletes and features a progression of female athletes of different ages from a child skier to a high-school aged gymnast to a college lacrosse player to, finally, an adult runner.

The massive 800 pound butter sculpture was constructed over a 10-day period by artists Jim Victor and Marie Pelton of Conshohocken, Penn. This year also marks a first: for the very first time in 16 years, color was featured in the butter sculpture.

Additionally, a chocolate milk bottle is the centerpiece, to emphasize the role that it plays in helping female athletes prepare for what comes next.

U.S. Olympic Athlete and professional runner Elle St. Pierre participating in the unveiling. 

“As a professional athlete and a dairy farmer, I am proud to produce a product—chocolate milk—that I know helps athletes refuel and recover after a tough workout or competition," St. Pierre said.

To put the butter to good use, after the New York State Fair, it will be deconstructed, and transported to Noblehurst Farms in Linwood where it will be recycled in a methane digester to create renewable energy.

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