Great Gorillas!

Ah what more could you ask for than a relaxing start to the weekend, fish and chips by the sea, a refreshingly salty stroll, a bunch of colourful gorillas and... wait, huh?

For those of you not living in South Devon, you might not know that we’ve been invaded.  They arrived last week by flotilla and now you can’t go anywhere in Exeter or Torbay without catching a sight of them.  No I’m not talking about hoards of grocks, although they’re here too, but a much rarer and altogether more peaceful group has recently landed on our shores – wild gorillas.

The Great Gorillas Project is a public art event taking place in both Torbay and Exeter for the next ten weeks.  Thirty life-size gorilla sculptures, and a number of smaller ones designed by local schools – are now gracing the streets, parks and open spaces of the region to highlight the threat facing wild gorillas.  It all coincides with Paignton Zoo’s 90th birthday; they’re hoping to raise a significant sum of money towards conservation projects for these rare and wonderful creatures.

Well this blog loves the quirky things in life, so Lizzie and I headed out on the trail of some of these sculptures, starting at our place of work, the University of Exeter.  Inside the new Forum building sits Takamanda, designed by an Exeter student who sent her gorilla on a globetrotting adventure to collect the stamps of other endangered animals, an inspired idea.

Our trail continued that evening in Babbacombe, where Hope was looking whimsically out to sea.  According to the guide, "Hope is designed to remind us what this event and the work of Paignton Zoo is all about.  She features the beautiful images of two of the Zoo's most iconic and endangered species.  The artist's aim is to inspire hope."

A short walk across the Downs, we come to a gorilla called Back of Beyond.  "The gorilla is the master of those untamed places in which he makes his home," says the guide.  "With so much of the world unexplored, we can fantasise about lost continents, obscure rivers and forgotten volcanoes in this cartographic mash up."  What an amazing design too - I wish I could get this map on paper.

The next day in Exeter, we rediscovered the gorilla trail around the city centre, meeting along the way X-Ray Ape (inspired by the artist's own broken bones), Miss Prints (showcasing a number of endangered animal prints, furs and feathers), and Mr Bumble, undoubtedly the most well-dressed gorilla on the trail, who is "so fond of fruit, he wears it on his suit."

Back in Torquay, the clever folk of South Devon College have painted their gorilla into legendary detective Poirot, and Hoopers department store has gone the whole hog, furnishing its window with art deco clothes and accessories.  In addition to Poirot, the harbourside is full of gorillas.  By Paigton Zoo's Living Coasts lies Hippocampus Guttulatus, covered in seahorses to help increase awareness of Torbay's two species of seahorse, whilst across the inner harbour is sparkly blue Barry and Five Minutes To Midnight, covered in clocks to represent the Domesday phrase and highlight the urgent need to save endangered gorillas.  This is a tough call, but Five Minutes to Midnight is probably my favourite gorilla on the trail.

What a wonderful art exhibition, I only wish I could have featured all the gorillas we have seen so far.  We can't wait to go back on the trail and pick up the Paignton and Brixham gorillas in the near future.  In the meantime, everyone should check out the Great Gorillas Project to see the serious conservation work behind this beautiful art trail.