A multitude of giant mermaid tail sculptures were seen swimming into an empty warehouse at Castlepoint recently. Over the next two months the blank sculptures will receive a mermaid makeover as they are painted with vibrant and colourful designs by local artists, ready for the launch of The Great Tail Trail across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) next spring.
The warehouse will house 24 of the mer-mazing sculptures, providing a shared painting space for The Great Tail Trail artists to work on their fin-tastic creations under one roof.
“It was so exciting to see the blank sculptures arriving at Castlepoint,” says Laura Maidment, Public Fundraising Manager for trail organisers, Julia’s House children’s hospice. “We’re looking forward to seeing their transformation over the next two months, and while we’ll be keeping most of the final designs a closely-guarded secret until the trail opens in April, we will be sharing lots of photos and videos on The Great Tail Trail Facebook and Instagram accounts to whet your appetite and build the suspense!
“Julia’s House would like to say an enormous thank you to Castlepoint, who we are delighted to announce will be the trail’s official Production Partner. As well as sponsoring one of the sculptures on the trail, Castlepoint is also providing a warehouse for our artists to bring their sculptures to life. It will be a great space for artists to work alongside each other as part of this really significant and important community art project.”
David Pickett, Centre Manager at Castlepoint said: ‘We are proud to be The Great Tail Trail’s official Production Partner and are excited to house the 24 mermaid tail sculptures at Castlepoint as they are transformed by local artists. Most importantly, we are glad to be supporting Julia’s House – a vital charity that provides life-changing care to families in Dorset with seriously ill children. At Castlepoint, we are dedicated to supporting a range of community initiatives and look forward to seeing the tails in their full vibrant glory when the trail goes live in April.’
The Great Tail Trail opens to the public for 8 weeks on 5 April, providing a free and family-friendly walking trail with 45 eye-catching mermaid tails positioned in popular locations around the BCP region. The remainder of the sculptures for the trail will be painted in local art studios around Dorset and across the UK.
The trail will raise awareness and vital funds for Julia’s House, which last year marked its twentieth anniversary of providing life-changing care to the families of seriously ill children across Dorset. The mermaid tail sculptures take their inspiration from the Mermaid Suite at the Julia’s House hospice in Corfe Mullen. This very special part of the hospice is where the Julia’s House nurses provide specialist care to children at the end of their life and support their families practically and emotionally through this most difficult of times.
Once the trail comes to end on 1 June, there is an exciting opportunity to purchase your very own one-of-a-kind mermaid tail when all the giant sculptures are auctioned off at a special event at the Italian Villa, Compton Acres, on 20 June, with all proceeds going direct to Julia’s House.