New, 62nd Wow! Gorilla for Bristol Zoo Gardens - 18/10/11
A new Wow! Gorilla sculpture named Rafiki has arrived at Bristol Zoo Gardens.
The new arrival was unveiled by Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies and artist Nicole Antrobus who painted the sculpture.
Rafiki, which means ‘friend’, is the 62ndWow! Gorilla created in celebration of Bristol Zoo’s 175thbirthday this year. Wow! Gorilla fans voted for a name for the sculpture, which will now be on permanent display at the Zoo near Gorilla Island.
Bristol Zoo recently auctioned off its Wow! Gorillas sculptures, raising £427,300 for the Zoo’s gorilla projects and Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal which is raising funds for the cardiology unit at Bristol Children’s Hospital.
Wendy Walton, Head of Commercial Operation at Bristol Zoo, said: “We have been thrilled with the success of Wow! Gorillas this summer and it’s lovely to have a new Wow! Gorilla to go on permanent display at the Zoo. Rafiki will be a lasting legacy of Bristol Zoo’s 175thanniversary year and a permanent reminder of the project and the joy it brought to so many people.”
Artist Nicole, from London, added: “It was an honour and a great challenge to be asked to decorate the 62ndgorilla sculpture. I’ve had such fun creating it and bringing it to life and it is unlike anything I have ever worked on before.
“I’ve drawn gorillas in Uganda and I took inspiration from that trip when I was designing and painting this sculpture. I hope many people will be able to enjoy it at Bristol Zoo over the coming years.”
Bristol Zoo is holding a raffle offering the chance to win limited edition Wow! Gorillas prizes. First prize is an unpainted, small gorilla, the same size as the schools’ gorillas.
Second prize is a small piece of a Formula One Marussia Virgin racing car engine in a presentation display box. Earlier this summer the Wow! Gorillas logo featured on the nosecone of the Marussia Virgin Racing Formula One team car at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Third prize is a limited edition, small ceramic Wow! Gorilla, painted in the style of one of the 61 Wow! Gorilla designs
Raffle tickets cost £1 each, available from Bristol Zoo until Friday, October 28, when the winners will be drawn. Tickets are also available online at www.bristolzoo.org.uk/win-a-wow-gorilla
ENDS
For press enquiries please contact the Bristol Zoo Gardens press office:
Lucy King, T: 0117 974 7396, E: lking@bristolzoo.org.uk
Vanessa Hollier, T: 0117 974 7309, E: vhollier@bristolzoo.org.uk
Notes to Editors
BristolZoo’s Wow! Gorillas’ project
- Wow! Gorillas formed a mass public art trail across the streets of Greater Bristol this summer in celebration of Bristol Zoo’s 175th birthday year.
- Each of the gorilla sculptures was sponsored by organisations, businesses and charities from across the region, and decorated in their own unique style by talented local artists.
- Bristol Zoo’s gorilla sculptures were created by Wild in Art, which promotes art through the use of unique animal sculptures as three dimensional artist’s canvas.
- As well as showcasing the wealth of creative talent the city has to offer, this eye-catching public exhibition aimed to attract tourists to Bristol, while encouraging Bristolians to be tourists in their own city.
- The trail also aimed to engender civic pride, stimulate the local economy and create a fun event for everyone to enjoy.
- During the 10-week trail period this summer, members of the public picked up 75,000 Wow! Gorillas trail maps and over 35,000 copies of the map were downloaded from the Zoo website.
- The Wow! Gorillas Facebook page now has over 13,000 fans and is increasing daily.
BristolZoo Gardens
- BristolZoo Gardensis a conservation and education charity and relies on income from visitors and supporters to continue its important work.
- This year Bristol Zoo celebrates its 175th anniversary and wants to do more than celebrate.
- Over that past 175 years, the Zoo has brought six generations of Bristolians closer to wildlife, helped save over 175 species from extinction, established over 30 field conservation and research programmes all over the world, showed 40 millionschool aged children the wonder of nature and given more than 90 million visitors a wonderful day out.
- Throughout the year Bristol Zoo will be bringing people, businesses, charities and wildlife together to share amazing experiences that raise awareness and funds to save threatened wildlife and places. To find out more, visit www.bristolzoo.org.uk/whats-on
- The Zoo will be focusing its efforts on raising funds and awareness in support of gorilla conservation and will be supporting theEuropean Association of Zoos and Aquaria Ape Campaign.
- The EAZA Ape campaign aims to make a significant and lasting contribution to the continued survival of apes and their habitats, and is being led by Dr Bryan Carroll, the Director of Bristol Zoo. www.bristolzoo.org.uk/conservation-campaigns.
- Bristol Zoo has supported and been actively in gorilla conservation in Cameroon since 1998.
