Project Brighton

Snowdogs take over Brighton and Hove!

This autumn a pack of giant Snowdogs will descend on Brighton and Hove to create a city art trail which takes in many of its iconic locations, as well as some hidden gems.

The extraordinary public art trail, Snowdogs by the Sea, will hit the streets of Brighton and Hove on Saturday September 24th and run for nine weeks until 27th Nov 2016. The magical sculpture trail will feature 45 giant Snowdogs, inspired by the much-loved animated short film, The Snowman and The Snowdog, based on the book by Sussex based author, Raymond Briggs. 

Commissioned artists have created each Snowdog so that every one has a unique identity. Artistic inspiration has come from a variety of sources. Some celebrate Brighton’s unique history, seafront location and iconic architecture, while there are also tributes to music legends, such as Bowie (‘Bow Wow’ by Mike Edwards), the Kinks (‘Lola’ by Devon Bhurke), and film star, Sophia Loren (‘Crush Puppy’ by Louise Dear).

Commissioned artists have created each Snowdog, so that every one has a unique identity

Artist, Pure Evil, has explored the darker side of the Snowman story and named his creation, ‘Snowman’s Nightmare.’ Brighton resident & DJ Norman Cook, AKA Fatboy Slim, has commissioned well known street artist, RYCA, to create his Snowdog, whilst crime author, Peter James, has a police themed Snowdog in a nod to his best selling Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series. 

Brighton’s latest attraction, British Airways i360, the world’s first vertical cable car, is sending its Snowdog, ‘Brighton Belle’ (named after the iconic Pullman) to Victoria Station where it will make its home for the duration of the trail. In a move back to tradition, the pier has named its Snowdog ‘Palace Pup’ to mark the fact that it has changed its name back to the original Palace Pier after new owners controversially renamed it ‘Brighton Pier’ in 2000. The trail also takes in Brighton Marina, where visitors have three Snowdogs to discover, and, in addition, an enormous sand sculpture celebrating the bond between the Snowman and Snowdog.

The giant Snowdogs will also be joined by a pack of 24 snow puppies designed by Brighton school children. These colourful creations will be on show at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, Hove Museum and the Booth Museum of Natural History, Hove Library and Jubilee library throughout the event.
 
There will also be lots of participatory events during the trail, such as Pooches on the Prom, Snowdog Dash and a festive farewell event on the first weekend in December, where the Snowdogs can be seen together for the first and final time. A trail map and Snowdogs by the Sea App will also be available to enable visitors to discover all the sculptures and ‘unlock’ special offers and unique content.

Peter James has a police themed Snowdog in a nod to his bestselling Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series

The trail is being organised by Brighton charity Martlets Hospice in conjunction with Wild in Art, one of the UK’s leading creative producers of public art events. At the end of the event each Snowdog will be auctioned to raise funds for the hospice. Snowdogs by the Sea is expected to raise significant funds for the hospice and attract tens of thousands of visitors to Brighton and Hove in the autumn.

Imelda Glackin, Martlets Hospice CEO said: “We are delighted to bring this public art event to Brighton and Hove. We have been overwhelmed by the support of businesses, artists, community groups and schools who have all come together to enable us to create this unique trail. We know that the people of Brighton and Hove will get behind it, and we expect it to attract thousands of tourists to the city too. What is wonderful about this project is that as well as being a brilliant free event which everyone can enjoy, it will also raise vital funds for Martlets so that we can support and care for more people who need hospice care.”

For more information and to keep up to date with all details of the campaign visit www.snowdogsbythesea.co.uk or follow Snowdogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @SnowdogsBTS #BrightonSnowdogs