Exciting new Elmer the Patchwork Elephant sculpture trail launches in Doncaster on World Kindness Day

A total of 12 elephants will be bringing oodles of kindness, colour and festive cheer as part of this year’s sculpture trail around the city centre. City of Doncaster Council is working with Wild in Art, creative producers of public art events and Andersen Press, publishers of the Elmer books, to bring the stunning sculptures to Doncaster. In addition to David McKee’s iconic patchwork Elmer, the elephants are inspired by well known artists with six of the sculptures featuring brand new designs unveiled for the first time in the city.

The arrival of Elmer’s Christmas Art Parade on World Kindness Day is also particularly poignant as the much loved story promotes kind acts, friendship and inclusivity, key themes of Doncaster’s Choose Kindness movement which will be sponsoring Elmer. Similar to last year’s hugely popular penguins, each elephant will be sponsored by a business, charity or organisation and trail-goers will be able to find out more details about these by scanning the QR codes on the sculptures.

There will also be opportunity to take part in a High Street Safari featuring 10 QR codes located in the windows of various Doncaster buildings that can be scanned using the camera on mobile devices to reveal pages of David McKee’s classic Elmer’s Christmas along with augmented reality characters from the book. An activity pack designed by publishers Andersen Press for the trail will also be available for children to enjoy.

Councillor Sue Farmer, Cabinet Member for Equalities, Education and Skills, said: "We're very excited to be welcoming Elmer and his friends to Doncaster on World Kindness Day to mark the start of this year’s festive trail.

"The heart-warming story has been enjoyed by millions of children and families the world over and complements our city-wide Choose Kindness movement. This has gone from strength to strength since its launch last year, embraced by individuals, schools, businesses and community groups taking the Choose Kindness pledge.

"So please come along and meet Elmer and all his friends who will be with us until the end of January. We’d love to see people and groups of all ages taking part in the trail, enjoying a relaxing stroll through the city centre, soaking up the festive atmosphere and finding the elephants in the city locations.”

Michael Hart, Chief Executive of Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust one of the elephant sponsors, said: “This is a fantastic way to bring arts and culture to the city centre and to get families involved. We are very proud to support Elmer’s Christmas Art Parade and to be involved with what will be a fun, creative event in our city while also celebrating the theme of kindness. We can’t wait to see all of the Elmer sculptures, to see our community engaging with this and to see the photographs as people find each one along the way.”

To find out more about Elmer’s Christmas Art Parade, other Frost Festival festive activities and to take the Choose Kindness pledge visit Visit Doncaster and Elmer's Art Trail - Doncaster's Winter Sculpture Trail and Choose Kindness A downloadable trail map will also be available. Watch this space!