The bees buzzed in Manchester. The elephants paraded through Sheffield. The rockets landed in Leicester. And now…something amazing is coming to Kirklees.
The Kirkwood are delighted to officially announce the launch of an exciting public art event, due to take place in Autumn 2022.
A free event for the whole community to enjoy, the spectacular showcase of creative talent will be put on display across Kirklees, forming an interactive Art Trail never before seen in the district.
The project will see The Kirkwood, the charity which provides care and support for anyone affected by any life-limiting illness in Kirklees, team up with event experts Wild in Art, who have been delivering world class public events across the globe for over 10 years.
To celebrate the care that is available to patients in their own homes and care homes in every street, village and town, 30 uniquely designed sculptures, along with 30 mini sculptures, will create an interactive trail across Kirklees.
Lasting for eight weeks, the amazing installations will pop up in towns and villages across Kirklees for everyone to explore and discover.
The free public event is set to benefit the whole community, with thousands of people expected to join in the fun.
Successful Art Trails in Manchester, Plymouth and the North East saw huge benefits for the local economy. An Art Trail delivered by Wild in Art in Newcastle and surrounding areas brought in over 650,000 visitors, whilst Manchester’s Bee in the City trail provided an economic boost of over £10 million.
Individually designed and decorated by talented artists from across the region and beyond, each sculpture will be based on a top-secret theme, which has yet to be revealed.
The centrepiece of next year’s Art Trail is being closely guarded by the team behind the project. But you don’t have too long to wait to find out. It’s all set to be revealed when The Kirkwood host an official launch event on October 5 at the Manor House, Lindley.
Kathryn Box from The Kirkwood said: “We are absolutely delighted to be launching our 2022 Art Trail. Whilst we’re keeping some details under our hats for now, we hope people will be just as excited as we are that such an exciting, world class, free public event will be coming to our local area.
“The Art Trail will celebrate our rich history and shared culture, encourage people to rediscover vibrant urban spaces and spend time outdoors, and show off the creativity that our towns and villages have to offer.
“It’s the perfect excuse to visit our great towns and villages and we hope it will inspire hundreds of thousands of people to get outside and explore their local communities again.”
As well as creating an event that gets people excited, the Art Trail also offers The Kirkwood a platform to raise awareness about their services, and to reach new people who may benefit from the charity’s services but aren’t aware currently of the many ways they can help.
Michael Crowther, chief executive with The Kirkwood, said: “This is an incredibly exciting project. It’s an event we know will inspire the whole community and bring people together.
“And we hope by creating something for everyone to enjoy and share as one community, we will be able to reach more people in need, support more families and carers who don’t know where to turn and create a lasting legacy for our vital local charity.”
As part of the Art Trail, businesses and individuals will be given a unique opportunity to sponsor a sculpture. Schools will also be able to get involved in a whole range of creative learning activities – and they’ll even be given the chance to design and adopt their very own mini sculpture.
On the scale and ambition of the project, Kathryn said: “This is the first time anything on this scale has been attempted here in West Yorkshire, which is a real feather in the cap for us here in Kirklees.”
If you’re an artist, represent a business, school, college or local community group and want to be involved, or are interested in finding out more, visit: www.thekirkwood.org.uk/arttrail
