Celebrating our bronze pride
Born Free’s Community Engagement team joined local schools in Hampshire to get creative and enjoy our life-size bronze lions, at Chewton Glen Hotel & Spa.
Young artists at Chewton Glen
To celebrate Born Free’s pride of life-size bronze lion statues, pupils from Tiptoe Primary and Highcliffe St Marks Primary joined our Community Engagement team for two special lion workshops, in New Milton, Hampshire.
Created to help celebrate our 2022 Year of the Lion, for the past two years the eye-catching pride has since been gracing the stunning grounds of Chewton Glen, a luxury spa hotel set within 130 acres of countryside within the New Forest.
Here our bronze lions have been delighting visitors and helping raise awareness of the threats lions face. Many of the statues represent a real lion, who is a key part of the Born Free story. From King, the tiny cub rescued from an apartment in Paris, to Black rescued from a circus beast-wagon, and McKenna, the bold, wild lioness who resides in Meru Conservation Area, Kenya, where we monitor and help protect lion populations.
Thankfully, the glorious summer weather held, and pupils were able to explore the grounds and see some of the lion statues up close. After taking part in Born Free’s King of the Jungle school workshop, pupils took part in an incredible biro art masterclass.
Under the expert guidance of Jane Lee McCracken, artist and founder of our long-term partner Drawing for the Planet, each child drew their own biro artwork, with the lion statues serving as their inspiration. Learning about the lions’ individual stories whilst drawing, helped the students to truly connect to the animal, and better understand the struggles lions can face, both in the wild and in captivity.
Students from Highcliffe St Mark’s Primary said:
“I’ve never known so much about lions!”
“I liked the lion art best… Sometimes I find things quite overwhelming, but with art I can relax.”
Jane’s mantra is ‘everyone can draw’, and looking at the stunning artwork produced by the pupils during these workshops, this clearly rings true.
“The children were invested in lions through the Born Free workshop, and they embraced making emotional connections with the lions which they drew. This shone in their extraordinary lion drawings,” commented Jane Lee McCracken.
The pupils’ artwork was later displayed at a special evening event held at Chewton Glen to celebrate the bronze lion pride prior to a move to their new homes. As well as sparking conversations amongst event attendees, the drawings will also help forge a lasting connection between the children and wildlife, inspiring them to champion wild animals, whether living in the wild, or captivity.
Rula Lenska, Jane Lee McCracken and Ian Redmond at the evening event alongside the artwork
If you are a teacher, and would like to book our King of the Jungle workshop so your class can learn all about lions through interactive games and activities, email: [email protected]