For the Birmingham Big Sleuth art trail I was commissioned to illustrate a bear sculpture to be placed in the city center for the months of July and September 2017. Following this the sculpture is auctioned off with profits going to the Birmingham Children's Hospital.
'Wild in Art' were the organisers of the trail and their theme for the trail centered around the Sun Bear which lives in the rain forests of South East Asia. Birmingham, having the most inner city trees than any other UK city was picked as a location for the trail, an asylum within a forest city.
My design focused on Birmingham's wide range of architecture and how little pride there seems to be in the buildings that make the city so unique. Much of the Birmingham's most iconic buildings have been torn down and replaced with an internationalist style that often contradicts space and function in favor or a 'wow' factor superficiality or a business/shopping park style blandness.
In my design I have drawn a rain forest crawling with creatures that are amalgamations of some of Birmingham's most interesting buildings crossed with animals from South East Asia that are close to extinction. Cutting into the bear are chainsaws (the bears are at threat from deforestation) and also bulldozing equipment that is tearing down some of Birmingham's lost architectural gems. These leave gold gashes around the body, linking to the empty 'bling' aesthetics that are taking over.
I was born and brought up in Birmingham and I have a lot of affection and pride in it. I hope to share this and open up a discussion about whether drastically changing the aesthetics and feel of a city also affects how it is used and appreciated and also look at the subjectivity of conservation and identity.
It took about 100 hours to draw and has been varnished to withstand all-weather conditions and be graffiti proof.