Torrie Horse scultpures pop up around Del Mar, California

Updated 7:03 AM ET, Tue November 14, 2017

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Walking around San Diego County these last couple of weeks, you may have noticed an usual trend popping up on the streets. Breeders' Cup

To celebrate the Californian city being awarded the Breeders' Cup -- North America's premier thoroughbred event -- local artists were asked to paint 20 life-size horse statues, which were then distributed around San Diego. Breeders' Cup

Made of fiberglass and standing at 7-feet high and 7-feet long, the statues are replicas of the horse atop the Breeders' Cup trophy. Breeders' Cup

The horse on the trophy is itself a reproduction of the original 'Torrie horse' sculpture created in Florence by Giovanni da Bologna in the late 1850s. Breeders' Cup

Some were distributed and placed in prominent areas of the city, while others were bought by establishments in the city -- all in the hope of generating interest in the Breeders' Cup. Breeders' Cup

"It's shameless marketing, of course!" quips Joe Harper, Director, President and CEO of Del Mar Racetrack. "You can't drive around in North County without running into one of those horses." Breeders' Cup

"It's certainly made all the locals aware and gave a little flavor of Del Mar even to the people who don't usually come out here." Breeders' Cup

Some of the artists, Harper explains, had never been to a racetrack before, which led to some interesting designs! Breeders' Cup

"They're not necessarily equine artists," he says. "They've just got a blank horse, a big white horse, and they can do what comes to their mind. Some have racetracks on them, some look like Trojan warhorses! It's kind of fun to get such a variety of different ideas from different artists." Breeders' Cup

Dubbed the 'Art of the Horse' project, the statues will be auctioned off now the Breeders' Cup is over with the proceeds going towards local community events and charities. Breeders' Cup