Artist painted unicorns will take to the streets for new Bristol arts trail

Hundreds of thousands of people will have the chance to marvel at the talents of dozens of artists when Bristol's latest art trail takes to the city's streets in June.

Sixty 'life-sized' unicorns will be placed across a wide area for locals and visitors to explore over the summer.

Jodie Hancock, of 'Unicornfest' explains: "Unicorns were featured on the original Bristol crest and what better year than 2023, when we're celebrating 650 years of Bristol, to revive the unicorn and bring it back to the city?"

It's the latest trail in what has become a tradition for Bristol, having previously seen gorillas (2011), Gromit (2013) and Shaun the Sheep (2015) draw huge crowds, many ticking-off sightings of the entire collection.

A dedicated app will again map this year's entries, which extended to Weston-super-Mare, Cheddar Gorge and Chew Valley.

Some artists have been working on their creations for months, all producing original pieces which will be auctioned off in October in aid of Leukaemia Care.

Bristol artist, Key, will be showcasing his work for the first time in public.

"I had the idea of it being a black unicorn because it's the opposite of what we generally see," says the 23-year-old. "It's really exciting, a bit daunting but mainly exciting because it's a big step in the art career for me in being able to show something publicly. I have got a lot of art to get out there eventually but this is a step in the right direction."

Fellow creative HazardOne spray-painted her creation, working in a shopping centre basement.

"When you get someone saying 'hi, seen your work before, please could you paint a unicorn', I thought it was a joke at the beginning," she says. "I've painted cars, I've painted a Boeing 727, I've painted all sorts but never a unicorn. I have now."

Forty 'foals' will also be painted by local schools and community groups to try to involve as wide an audience as possible.

Jodie adds: "We just hope that they bring joy, spark creativity and really bring Bristol together, whether it's the creative scene or the Bristol businesses who have got involved or the schools, we just want to celebrate our city as much as possible."