Bookmark this page and visit for regular updates on
the progress of the sculpture, and for news of events etc. associated
with the project.
Update 10.10.10
We are delighted to say that the lion statue will be coming
home to Pollyanna's gallery in June 2011 where it will be the
centrepiece of her exhibition 'Painted with Pride'. Check back
next year for full details of this exciting event!
The Lion arrives at Pollyanna's Studio.
Pollyanna's original rough design
The Lion in Progress ........
Pollyanna sprays her chosen 'basecoat' colour on to the white
lion sculpture.
Beginning to outline the design
Adding some details...
..... and the design begins to take shape
Pollyanna visits her lion in Northampton
Pollyanna chats to Jonty Hearnden following the auction
Previous updates :
Update 25.05.10 :
Guests at the 'Pride in the Park' ball on the 12th June will
be the first to see Pollyanna's completed lion which will be
displayed at the event before going on to the streets of Northampton.
Pollyanna will be attending the event, as will Born Free founder
Virginia McKenna.
Update 07.06.10 :
The lions will start appearing on the streets of Northampton
from the 26th June - free trail maps will be available to help
you locate all the lions!
Update 09.06.10
The first posters announcing a special event beginning on the
26th June appear on the streets of Northampton....
Update 27th July 2010
Lions Now on the streets!
Don’t miss the opportunity to visit the City of Northampton
and follow the trail around the city to see the Pride of Forty
lions which have taken to the city streets! Pollyanna’s
lion ‘Good Morning Africa’ can be found in All Saints
Plaza. Trail maps can be downloaded free of charge at www.prideofnorthampton.com
or picked up at a wide variety of locations throughout the city.
Souvenir brochures are also on sale. Grab your camera and head
over to the city to see how many lions you can spot!!
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Pride of Northampton
In June 2010 Pollyanna was joined by Virginia McKenna (above
right) to officially unveil one of the most unusual pieces of
artwork she has ever completed! ‘Good Morning Africa’
is a life size lion sculpture, designed and painted by Pollyanna
as part of the Pride of Northampton event.
For a 10 week period in Summer 2010, Northampton’s streets,
parks, open spaces and shopping centres were host to a pride
of 5ft lions in the town’s most high profile event, engaging
artists, community groups and schools and attracting regional
and national visitors to the town centre. Pollyanna is delighted
that she was selected as one of the artists to paint one of
these magnificent sculptures, which brought an explosion of
colour and excitement to Northampton's streets and open spaces.
Over £65,000 raised through the auction of the lions
in September was divided between The Born Free Foundation and
to a local Northampton charity, the Cynthia Spencer Hospice.
Virginia Mckenna Spoke very movingly about the work of Born
Free prior to the auction which was conductd by celebrity auctioneer
Jonty Hearndon (above). We are dleighted that bidding was fast
and furious for Pollyanna's lion - which fetched one of the
highest prices of all the statues.
We are also delighted to say that the lion statue will be coming
home to Pollyanna's gallery in June 2011 where it will be the
centrepiece of her exhibition 'Painted with Pride'.
The statue was orginally unveiled by Pollyanna and Virginia
at Born Free’s Pride in the Park Ball in Derby, where
he stood beside the red carpet to greet visitors as they entered!
He has now joined the rest of the forty strong Pride on display
in the city streets of Northampton. Already proving to be one
of the most popular lions on display, he has been selected as
one of twelve to be featured in a pack of commemorative postcards.
Pollyanna is shown below working on her lion watched by visitors
to her gallery during the Derbyshire Open Arts weekend.
Pollyanna commented "The deep terracottas and warm golds
and reds used in the design were inspired by my painting safaris
throughout Africa, from the mountains of Ethiopia to the deserts
of Namibia. The outline map of Africa and glowing sunset embody
the wonder of the Continent on which the lion roams, while the
main bold symbols of rock art were inspired by my visits to
sites of ancient civilisations close to Born Free’s Shamwari
reserve in South Africa. I am fascinated by the idea of combining
my own 21st century work with the work of artists from thousands
of years ago. Wildlife Art is the oldest art form - the earliest
cave paintings ever discovered depict animals. As the project
will benefit Born Free, I have included an extract of the evocative
lyric of the Oscar winning song – while the compass on
the back of the lion points the way to their inspirational conservation
work around the globe."
Click
here to find out more about the project
Pollyanna at work on the lion
Above - one of Pollyanna's paintings of a lion inspired by
the ancient Rock Paintings in Namibia.
.JPG)
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