Giraffe About Town trail sees first paintwork start on first giraffe sculpture at Leith's Ocean Terminal

New images of Edinburgh Zoo’s upcoming Giraffe About Town trail have been released, giving Edinburgh residents a hint of what they can expect to see around the city streets this summer.

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Working in partnership with Wild in Art, the exciting art event will see 40 giant giraffe sculptures swarm the Capital’s streets, in a public exhibition which hopes to help heal the city following the Covid-19 pandemic and to “drive footfall in the city centre.”

Each sculpture will be designed and painted by local artists and community groups, and residents and visitors will be able to find the distinct looking creatures at “iconic locations” as well as “hidden gems” around the city between July 1 and August 29.

Each sculpture will be designed and painted by local artists and community groups

Today The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) shared a picture of the first sculpture being painted by Glasgow based artist, David Fleck ahead of the unique visual art campaign which has been described as “free trail of discovery.”

In line with the project’s desire to “celebrate Edinburgh’s extraordinary heritage and cultural diversity”, David’s design is inspired from “iconic locations from throughout Scotland.”

The exciting art initiative will culminate with a “farewell weekend” at Edinburgh Zoo where all 40 of the eight foot sculptures will be displayed together before being auctioned off to raise funds for RZSS wildlife conservation work in Scotland and around the world.

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