Marion Cultural Alliance marks 25 years with $500K+ economic impact and a new arts app

The Marion Cultural Alliance’s Horse Fever sculptures include 80 painted horses across Ocala, with 12 owned or maintained by the city.

The Southeastern Livestock Pavilion provided a safe space for equine evacuees, who looking to get out of harm's way from the effects of Hurricane Helene. Courtesy: Ben Baugh/352today

352todayA new Ocala Art Trail app called Oates will let users locate every Horse Fever sculpture and local arts venues across Marion County.

OCALA, FL (352Today.com) – Ever wonder about the story behind the strategically placed horse sculptures around Ocala?

Many of them are part of the long-running Horse Fever project, a series of painted fiberglass horses that have become a signature of Marion County’s public art. Of the roughly 80 horses in the area, 12 are owned by or on loan to the city of Ocala and maintained by city staff. Others have been commissioned by businesses and agencies. Just this year, the Marion Cultural Alliance (MCA) completed 10 unique horses for local organizations, including one recently installed at the Department of Transportation’s new Ocala facility that depicts the evolution of transportation in the county, and another called Liberty, commissioned by the Board of County Commissioners, that is being installed at the downtown courthouse.

Those horses, and the broader arts effort behind them, were the focus of a presentation at the start of the Tuesday, October 20, 2026, city council meeting at Ocala City Hall. Jaye Baillie, executive director of the MCA, gave the organization’s annual update to the city council, marking the alliance’s 25th anniversary and outlining plans that include a new mobile app designed to help people find every Horse Fever sculpture in the county.

Baillie said the alliance has reached 425,000 people and awarded $701,000 in grants to local arts organizations since it was founded in 2001. It has also distributed $623,500 in scholarships, honorariums, and direct support to artists. The alliance’s overall economic impact has been calculated at more than half a million dollars, according to Baillie. In the past year, it received three National Endowment for the Arts grants totaling $100,000 under a dollar-for-dollar match, and it has awarded $33,000 through its “Four Friends” grants for individual artists.

At the Brick City Center for the Arts, which the city invited the alliance to occupy in 2006, the organization held 11 exhibits last year featuring 563 works by 295 artists. The center’s gift shop generated $62,000 in sales, and 10,467 people came through the doors.

Looking ahead, the alliance’s board is set to adopt a 2027-2029 strategic plan focused on raising more money for grants and strengthening partnerships. A key piece of that plan is the Ocala Art Trail app, known as “Oates.” The app is intended to serve as a one-stop guide to every Horse Fever sculpture in Ocala-Marion County, as well as local arts and cultural venues. Baillie said people regularly ask where all the horses are located, and the tool is meant to answer that question while making the county’s arts scene easier to explore. The alliance is also working with the Ocala-Marion County Visitor and Convention Bureau on a grant to promote downtown as an arts destination.