As part of the London Borough of Culture, Croydon Stands Tall aims to shine a positive light on Croydon, bringing local talent to the forefront while attracting people from across our diverse borough and beyond to witness something unique to Croydon as we deliver one of the largest mass participation events seen in recent times.
In September 2023, over 30 specially curated and uniquely, professionally painted giraffes will take centre stage. At 8ft tall, you won’t miss them. Across 10 weeks, our free, family-friendly trail of 8ft Giraffes will be positioned across the town centre to create a mass participation trail, showcasing the local talents of our creative network, attracting greater footfall, and supporting our local economic recovery.
Croydon Stands Tall is a collective, partnership-led initiative designed to bring together multiple aspects of the borough together as we shine a light on the rich talent we possess as a borough.
The evening welcomed inspirational speakers as Croydon Stands Tall offered an insight into what is hoped will be a widely welcomed unique art trail. Joining Matthew Sims, CEO at Croydon BID were: Charlie Langthorne, Director at Wild In Art, who gave a summary of the impact other projects have had in other destinations across the country. Richard Lee, Director of Fundraising at Crisis, who spoke of the need to support our homeless community, all of whom have a name and an identity and all of whom certainly do not want to be homeless. Finally, Mayor of Croydon, Jason Perry, offered an insight into the London Borough of Culture, its development and his hope for the future as we gear up to celebrate in 2023.
Central to the launch was the unveiling of the first giraffe sculpture, designed by Croydon’s very own contemporary pop-up urban artist, Rich Simmons. Simmons, who is also the creator and founder of ‘Art is the Cure’, an award-winning charity promoting art therapy, referenced the need to support the young people of today to promote art through learning and hopes to build upon his association with Croydon Stands Tall by leaving a legacy.
Croydon Stands Tall will focus on leaving a valuable legacy for Croydon.
A secondary trail of a further 30 smaller giraffe sculptures will form the centre piece of a learning programme whereby local schools can adapt curriculum-based learning with the support of the initiative to play an active and collective role in Croydon Stands Tall and the London Borough of Culture.
As we grapple with the cost of living, Croydon BID has confirmed Crisis and the Crisis Croydon Skylight as its charitable partner. At the end of the project, all 30 sculptures will be placed in an auction with the proceeds supporting people who are experiencing homelessness or are at risk of homelessness. To date, Wild In Art events have contributed over £3.8m to communities.
The official launch of Croydon Stands Tall welcomed local businesses, creative groups, and community organisations to the London South Bank University for this special evening in which the first sculpture design was unveiled.
Croydon Stands Tall is a project brought to you by Croydon BID and Wild In Art, supported by Croydon, the London Borough of Culture and the Greater London Authority. The Croydon Stands Tall sculpture trail will go live in September 2023.
For further information on Croydon Stands Tall and how you can support Croydon and the London Borough of Culture, please visit Croydon Stands Tall or get in touch with Croydon BID on 020 8603 0050.
