Earnest Edmund will be taking pride of place outside our Mutual House branch in the centre of Ipswich for 12 weeks over the summer. We are delighted to be joining the trail as Community Engagement Partner following our previous involvement in the successful Pigs Gone Wild trail back in 2016, which raised more than £200,000 for St Elizabeth Hospice and brought an estimated £1m economic boost for our town.
This announcement marks the first and only full reveal of a sponsor design, with the remaining 54 sculptures being kept under wraps until the trail starts in just a few weeks’ time.
Richard Norrington, our CEO said: “We are delighted to be able to unveil our sculpture ahead of the trail. Once again with our sculpture design we wanted to put the spotlight on Suffolk and the beautiful landscapes, buildings, and coastlines that are on our doorstep.
Following suggestions from our members and employees we chose the name Earnest Edmund, paying tribute to both the Society’s mutual status and the patron saint of Suffolk. Earnest Edmund will be travelling around each of our branches before joining us at the Hadleigh Show on Saturday 18 May, then joining the trail in the summer.”
Earnest was created and painted by Mik Richardson, the artist behind Pretty Penny, the Society’s previous sculpture for the Pigs Gone Wild trail. It celebrates the Suffolk landscapes and iconic buildings, with each of the Society’s branch towns featuring on the design.
From 15 June to 7 September 2019, visitors will be able to discover Earnest Edmund amongst the 140 beautifully painted, unique Elmer sculptures in the parks and open spaces of Ipswich town centre and waterfront. Elmer’s Big Parade Suffolk, St Elizabeth Hospice’s latest art trail organised in partnership with Wild in Art and Andersen Press, is inspired by the much-loved children’s book character, Elmer the Patchwork Elephant.
