Wallace & Gromit sheep sculptures flock into London in aid of children's charity

This article originally appeared on Culture24.

Sheep sculptures hope to repeat success of Bristol charity trail by descending on London

Arriving on a two-tonne tractor which dwarfed the city’s famous Routemaster buses, a flock of 50 huge, colourful sheep, sculpted by artists across the country based on Wallace and Gromit’s endearing Shaun the Sheep, have been pulled by traileracross London Bridge, Tower Bridge and the city.

The giant versions of the unimposing character will form an arts trail, Shaun in the City, to raise money for children in hospitals nationwide. David Gandy and Cath Kidston are among the contributing artists.

“I spent around 50 hours painting him over several weeks,” says Jenny Urquhart, whose five-foot sheep, Lambmark Larry, is covered in 73 pigeons and 30 famous landmarks. It will be based on Platform 8 of Paddington Station.

“It’s quite tricky painting while maintaining a crouched position under his tummy, tail or chin. I banged my head at least five times a day.

“It’s amazing to think just how many people will see him at Paddington Station and have their photos taken with him.

“My Shaun was inspired by the many cityscapes I’ve painted of London. The city has a colourful array of landmarks and I've tried to display some of my favourite ones on the sculpture.

“A pair of tame pigeons visit my studio window bird feeder everyday so I thought I would also include them on Lambmark Larry, given how many pigeons there are in London.”

Sponsored by Bristol University, Urquhart’s work follows a successful trail of Shauns in Bristol in 2013, when the Wallace & Gromit Children’s Foundation raised £2.3 million.

Their locations this time range from Covent Garden and Carnaby Street to Trafalgar Square, the Shard and St Paul’s Cathedral.

“We wanted to bring our next project to the capital,” says Nicola Masters, of the charity.

"Shaun the Sheep is a timeless creation with real international appeal.

“He is loved in the Far and Middle East almost as much as here in the UK, so to host this trail in one of the most international cities in the world made perfect sense."

An interactive app will help questers find sheep on the trail, with 70 sculptures appearing in Bristol this summer. All 120 Shauns will be exhibited in London and Bristol before being sold at public auction in October.

• Visit shauninthecity.org.uk for more, or follow the flock on Facebook and on Twitter @shaun_inthecity.

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Source: http://www.culture24.org.uk//art/art522059-wallace-and-gromit-sheep-sculptures-flock-into-london-in-aid-of-children-charity