Elmer’s Big Belfast Trail

Have you ‘herd’?

From the 20^th June 2022 Belfast City will be brought to life by a herd of uniquely decorated, amazingly creative, elephant sculptures.  The free, family-friendly art trail – a collaboration between Northern Ireland Hospice, Wild in Art and Andersen Press, brings David McKee’s popular children’s character Elmer the Patchwork Elephant to life.

The uniquely decorated Elmer’s will be positioned around key landmarks, streets, and open spaces in Belfast for ten weeks until 31st August. Elmer and his friends will then travel to Antrim Castle Gardens on Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th September where you can come and see all the elephants together. A final Farewell Event will then take place on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th September in Belfast.

The herd of Elmers will deliver a ton of fun and laughter this summer and attract local residents and visitors from far and wide to discover, and re-discover Belfast City, making art accessible to all.  Each Elmer is sponsored by a local business or organisation, making the trail deeply rooted in the local community

Visitors and residents can explore the city centre, parks and open spaces while following the Trail to discover all of the bold and eye-catching large Elmers.

The Trail also includes Elmer’s Learning Herd which is made up of 30 ‘Young Elmer’ sculptures, each designed and painted by local schools and youth organisations from across Northern Ireland.

We will also have one very special Elmer, designed especially for Northern Ireland Hospice to coincide with their celebrations for 21 years of care since the opening of the Children’s Hospice at Horizon House.

At the end of the Trail each of the Elmers from the art trail will be auctioned to raise funds for Northern Ireland Hospice. These funds will enable them to continue to provide outstanding care and support to local families when they need it most.

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