Follow the Cotswolds Kingfisher Trail – how many can you spot?
The Cotswolds Kingfisher Trail is a fantastic free, public arts trail. It was officially launched on Monday 31st May 2021. The trail comprises 22 wonderful kingfisher sculptures designed by talented local artists in and around the Cotswolds.
Residents and visitors to the Cotswolds National Landscape can follow the trail during the summer of 2021. The aim is to encourage people to get out into nature and enjoy the outstanding natural beauty of the Cotswolds.
What is the Cotswolds Kingfisher Trail for?
Photo: Kingfisher artist Kerry Phippen © Russell Sach (used with permission of the Cotswolds National Landscape)
Another aim of the Cotswolds Kingfisher Trail is to bring businesses, arts and local communities together.
The individually designed kingfishers are showcasing the diverse talents of local artists. As a result, everyone is talking about them! As locals and visitors alike discover the kingfishers, they are also discovering more about the wonderful Cotswolds. They are visiting villages they’d never been to before, thus using shops and small businesses they’d never used before.
At the end of the project, art lovers and businesses will bid for the birds at auction. This will raise money for the vital conservation work of the Cotswolds National Landscape.
Why kingfishers?
The kingfisher is one of the UK’s most colourful and recognisable birds. It was chosen for this project because it is seen as resilient and adaptable – just like the communities and businesses in the Cotswolds.
Cotswolds Kingfisher Trail artists
Photo: Kingfisher artist Imogen Harvey-Lewis © Russell Sach (used with permission of the Cotswolds National Landscape)
The 22 kingfisher sculptures along the trail are all completely different. They have been decorated by 22 different artists: classic painters, abstract artists, street artists, illustrators and graphic designers – there is something for everyone!
The panel of artists is led by internationally acclaimed and Gloucestershire-based PJ Crook. Other artists involved in the project include mural artist Andy ‘Dice67’ Davies, street artist Peachezz, landscape artist Guy Warner and illustrator Imogen Harvey-Lewis.
You can read more about the work of the artists here, and read interviews with some of the artists here.
Where is the Cotswolds Kingfisher Trail?
The unique sculptures are located at various places around the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty to form two distinct trails.
In the west, the Severn Trail follows the tributaries of the River Severn and the Cotswold Way along the dramatic escarpment. In the east, the Thames Trail links stunning Cotswold villages and the waterways and tributaries of the River Thames.
There is also a Golden Kingfisher at Iford Manor Gardens in Bradford-on-Avon, a kingfisher mural in Cheltenham, and a ‘flying’ kingfisher, which will move to a new location every two weeks.
You can find the locations of the sculptures on the map here, or by downloading the Kingfisher Trail app.
Kingfishers on Go Cotswolds tours
If you join us on our guided tours of the Cotswolds, then you can see some of the kingfisher sculptures!
There are kingfishers located in Chipping Campden, Stow-on-the-Wold and Bibury. These are all stops on our Cotswolds in a Day tour.
Plus, if you join any of our tours from Moreton-in-Marsh, then you can see another kingfisher sculpture there. Arrive in Moreton-in-Marsh early, or stay a while after your tour!
For more information about the Cotswolds Kingfisher trail, then see the official website: https://www.kingfishertrail.org/.
