I’ve slightly lost the order in which we visited the sculptures, not that it’s the most important part of the journey.
I know we looked at the ones towards the East and so let’s start there.
Walk the Lime
Love this sculpture. The artist has taken the idea of a lime and amped it up to really make an impact on the piece. The texture on the ears is painted, however it looks like the pitted skin of a lime fruit. Simple, yet really effective.
Marigold
A delightful piece, tucked inside an Ikea in a random shopping part of the city. It’s only viewable when Ikea is open, however, the store is easily accessible. There are lifts and escalators into the store just behind the sculpture.
We did stop for a quick pit stop in Ikea, treating ourselves to a slice of Daim cake and some cola that tasted amazing and reminded me of the Fentimans cola style. The backdrop is also amazing and captures the aesthetic of the piece.
Starcatcher
Another simple, yet brilliant design. I’m not sure if I like the stars on his face. However the piece definitely covers the name of it. The rocket on the hat is not the rocket that Wallace built in the film, A Grand Day Out, so I do have to take points away.
This little guy is in a small park on a main road. A lovely bit of greenery in amongst the housing. We did visit at an early time of day and spotted a couple of park runners. However I can see that it would be a lovely place to pop for a lunch break or a short rest.
Sweet and Tidy
I feel Sweet and Tidy is a more interesting use of the details that are on the Norbot sculpture. The pockets that are drumstick lollies and the belt is a rainbow lace belt.
He’s located on the end of a disused piece of railway that has been turned into a cycle way. On the same side of the road is a car park and some public loos should you need a pitstop on the route. I believe the waiting rooms have been turned into a cafe, however no one seemed to be around when we had a quick peek.
Rosebud
Located on a high street just outside an estate agents. Rosebud is accessible, however, we couldn’t park the van on the street parking and had to go around behind the shops to the car park. There are a couple of free spaces, however, because we turned up on a Saturday morning, the spaces were in full use. We paid our nominal fee to grab an hour’s parking and nipped round the corner to the sculpture.
I like the design, it’s okay. Not my favourite by any stretch, but it’s pink and has roses on it. So the name fits.
Austentatious
The sculpture itself is amazing, as you can see from the photo, the top half is a living plant. Which I assume it is maintained for the couple months of the trail. It is certainly faring better than the grass in this heat! It’s also the first sculpture using a different pose for Gromit.
The Kendleshire is a big golf club. One of these that are accessed via a long narrow, winding lane. The tarmacked car park area is reserved for VIP and club chair members. We parked on more small rocks in the rest of the car park.
To access Austentatious you need to go through the club cafe/bar area. Which I found disorientating until a kindly gentleman asked if we wanted the sculpture and pointed us in the right direction. I don’t often feel out of place, however golf clubs are the one place where I feel I’m intruding.
Mowgli
You know those quaint English villages that are tucked away down a couple of miles of narrow winding lanes? That’s Pucklechurch and The Rose & Crown is a whitewashed building just out from the centre of the village. I feel I’m coming across too harshly. The pub is lovely to visit, and has some alpacas that are possibly friendly? I didn’t catch them on our early morning visit. I say early, however the opening time is 11:30am.
