It won’t be long until thousands of people flock to Newcastle to take on an art trail with a difference, hoping to find 45 big and 70 little Shaun the Sheep sculptures located across the city.
But every explorer needs a map to navigate their way, and luckily for Shaun on the Tyne trail goers, ours is just a little bit baa-rilliant, thanks to the support and creative genius of marketing agency Different Narrative.
The Newcastle-based agency kindly supported previous trails, Great North Snowdogs (2016) and Elmer’s Great North Parade (2019) in support of St Oswald’s Hospice, and when their team heard about Shaun on the Tyne, they were quick to join the flock as a trail partner and lend their skills by designing our trail map. This project is a key part of the trail, as the paper map contains not only all the information people need to get the most out of their art adventure, but it also shows them where to find all big and little Shauns which will be located in parks, streets and public buildings for ten weeks from Wednesday 19th July.
Trail organisers, St Oswald’s Hospice, are working with creative producers Wild in Art and Shaun the Sheep creators Aardman to present the trail, and the design of the map features the iconic Shaun characters and branding, which Different Narrative Senior Designer, Chris Pescod, enjoyed getting creative with.
Chris Pescod, Senior Designer at Different Narrative said:
“It’s not only great for our agency to get involved but from a personal perspective it’s nice to work on something that is so visible across the region. The characters are very recognisable and I’d encourage everyone to get out and check out the trail. I was showing my son (age six) some of the designs and he thought it was hilarious – we can’t wait to head out as a family to find Shaun.
“It’s also really great for us to be able to give something back. We have a Change for Good agenda which carries the same values as the hospice. It’s brilliant to be able to put our skills to good use for a purpose-driven campaign and it’s good to know that what you specialise in is going to make a difference.”
The maps will be available to pick up from vendors across the region, including Shaun on the Tyne HQ at the Civic Centre and all St Oswald’s shops, for a suggested donation to the hospice of £1. As well as the all-important map, it includes details of upcoming events and other ways to get involved, plus the chance to win your very own Shaun the Sheep to keep forever! Click here to find out where you can pick up a map from the 19th July.
Libby Fryer, Shaun on the Tyne Project Lead said:
“We are so excited to be working with Different Narrative again, after forming such a perfect partnersheep during previous trails. Their previous maps have been fabulous and the team are so creative easy to work with, they really have brought our vision to life. Creating a map with 115 Shauns spread across a city is no easy task, but we think they have done a wonderful job!
Thanks to Ben, Chris, Kim and all the team at Different Narrative for supporting the trail and St Oswald’s Hospice this way. We look forward to getting our maps out across the city and seeing people using them to find the flock.”