Pride of Rotherham: new mural for Clifton Park and Museum

Ed Vere painting the Lion at Clifton Park Garden Room, taken by Louise Treloar, Grimm and Co
Ed Vere painting the Lion at Clifton Park Garden Room, taken by Louise Treloar, Grimm and Co

Visitors to Clifton Park Museum will soon be greeted by a new mural of Leonard, the kind and courageous lion created by award-winning children’s author and illustrator Ed Vere.

The mural will be on display in readiness for the museum reopening this September, reuniting residents with their very own lion, the much-loved, family favourite, Nelson.

The 8 foot by 12 foot mural can be found outside the Garden Building, close to the museum in the award-winning Clifton Park, from Wednesday 12 August, and is one of Ed’s projects created while working as Booktrust’s Illustrator in Residence.

Ed, currently illustrator in residence at reading charity BookTrust said: “I’m a great believer in the power of art. During my time as Booktrust’s Illustrator in Residence, I wanted to make a mural that felt enormously positive right in the centre of a community. I hope to draw attention to the importance of reading with and for young children by painting ‘Leonard’ from my book, ‘How to be a Lion’.

“When the Booktrust team suggested Rotherham through their contacts with Grimm & Co, and Rotherham Council made the link with Nelson it felt like the perfect fit. I hope the mural will be a warm and positive presence for many years to come, and to remind everyone of the pleasure of drawing and reading. I also hope that Leonard and Nelson will like each other.”

‘How to be a Lion’ is the winner of Oscar's Book Prize 2019, elected by the children's laureate Lauren Child and a jury including Sarah Brown. The book tells the tale of a lion who is kind and compassionate, writing poetry and making friends with a duck named Marianne. The loveable Leonard stands up to his peers who criticise his friendships and proves that you don’t have to roar to be heard. Ed said: ‘'How to be a Lion' tries to show that being gentle, considerate and exhibiting a sensitive side are not weaknesses. They’re part of being a well-rounded, thinking, human being. It’s a book about thinking for yourself and standing up for who you are.”

Rotherham Council worked in partnership with local children’s literacy charity Grimm & Co to facilitate the mural in homage to the popular one-eyed lion Nelson who is on permanent display within the Clifton Park Museum and is said to have been the original model for the lions in London’s Trafalgar Square.

Nelson is a South African Cape Lion which is now extinct and has been a much-loved exhibit within the museum by generations of Rotherham residents, yet sadly inaccessible to the public for five months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cllr Sarah Allen, Rotherham Council’s Cabinet Member for Cleaner, Greener Communities. said: “We’re delighted to support Ed’s work both as a muralist and as an advocate for children’s literacy and learning. The mural of Leonard will help to raise awareness of the importance of reading from a very young age. The story is one of kindness, compassion and hope which will be hugely important characteristics of our communities as we recovery from COVID-19, and it will be a fantastic welcome back to Clifton Park Museum for our residents and visitors.”

The lion mural, along with the museum collections will be used to develop a new Early Years programme at Clifton Park Museum. There will be many opportunities for young children to explore the museum, enjoy stories and develop their creativity.

Rotherham-based children’s literacy charity Grimm & Co helped to facilitate the mural coming to Rotherham.

Louise Treloar, Communications Coordinator at Grimm & Co, added: "We are thrilled that Ed's mural will be sited here in Rotherham. It's so important to us that children and young people can take pride in their town, and we think this mural is a great way to start with the joy of stories. This has been a wonderful collaboration between Grimm & Co, Clifton Park Museum, BookTrust and Ed to help children enjoy stories and illustration from an early age. We hope we can continue this relationship and make Rotherham a story destination together."

The mural will be on display initially outside of the Garden Building, with potential to incorporate the mural as a permanent feature within the surroundings of the museum.

A programme of events with the artist will take place both in person and online over the coming months. For more details follow Clifton Park Museum on Twitter or Facebook.

Published: 10th August 2020