Description

Inspired by the theory that penguins are known to be one of the most monogamous species, the design is based on the idea of love and loyalty.

The all-over botanical design features an array of floral and heart motifs in a warming tone of pastel colours, hoping to capture the eye and create a warming and comforting feeling for those around it.

The loyalty and devotion shown by these species enable that special family bond to stay together and strong. That family bond is something that St Richard’s care supports.

Audio read by: Nina Das Gupta from BBC Hereford and Worcester

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Artist

Katie Hodgetts

Katie Hodgetts is a local maker, specialising in hand-painted, glazed ceramics and home décor. Katie set up her own ceramics business back in 2020, called Paint & Glaze. It has since grown over the years, now selling a diverse range of ceramic homeware products and taking commissions for personalised keepsakes.

Having always been fascinated with pattern, stemming from her degree in Textile Design, Katie loves that she can apply pattern to household items to be enjoyed by people in their everyday lives!

Drawing inspiration and shape from her travels and love for being outdoors, her work explores a playful interpretation of everyday life. As a designer Katie has an eye for developing and applying surface pattern across varied scale. This is evident in her own practice but also across large scale sculptures after her involvement with Wild in Art & other large-scale commissions.

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Location

39. Kleve Walk (Water Gate)

Built in the 14th century, The Water Gate is a sandstone structure with portcullis and double gates. This entryway gave direct access to the River Severn from the cathedral and monastery grounds.

In the wall, you will find dated bricks showing the water levels of the River Severn over the course of its history, during periods of flooding.

Worcester’s city walls are a sequence of defensive structures built around the city of Worcester in England between the 1st and 17th centuries. The first walls to be built around Worcester were constructed by the Romans.

More about this location

39. Kleve Walk (Water Gate)

These early walls lasted beyond the fall of the Empire, and the defences encouraged several early Christian foundations to establish themselves in Worcester during the troubled 6th and 7th centuries. The Anglo-Saxons expanded Worcester in the 890s, forming a new walled, planned city, called a burh. The burh utilised the southern stretches of the old Roman walls, but pushed further north to enclose a much larger area. The Anglo-Saxon city walls were maintained by a share of taxes on a local market and streets, in an agreement reinforced by a royal charter.

After the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century a motte and bailey castle was constructed on the south side of the city, but the Norman rulers continued to use the older burh walls, despite the city having expanded beyond these defences in the north and south-east. During the years of the Anarchy in the 1140s, Worcester was successfully attacked several times; after the war a new city wall was built to improve the city’s defences. The new walls, completed by the early 13th century, were constructed of stone and had three main gates. They were maintained in good condition into the 17th century.

During the English Civil War in the 1640s the old medieval walls were reinforced with modern earthwork bastions and an outlying fort, called a sconce. Worcester changed hands several times during the conflict, and after the war ended the newer fortifications were dismantled. During the 18th century the older medieval stone walls and gatehouses were sold and mostly destroyed: by the 20th century, few parts survived. Post-war archaeology in the 1950s and 1960s and construction work in the 1970s revealed previously hidden stretches of the wall, and in the 21st century plans have been drawn up to improve the conservation and maintenance of this historic monument.

This location fact was sourced from Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worcester_city_walls

 

Take home your own feathered friend

In October 2024 all 40 large penguins and one chick will be auctioned to raise funds for the care provided by St Richard’s Hospice.

In 2021, 31 stunning elephant sculptures raised a mammoth £368,800 to support the care provided by St Richard’s Hospice across Worcestershire.

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