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A life-size crocheted gorilla and decorated camel heads are now on display at Kings Hill's iconic Second World War Control Tower as part of an eclectic exhibition.
The gorilla is the latest addition to a series of sculptures by Shauna Richardson, whose work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Saatchi Gallery, The Natural History Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
She invented the term Crochetdermy to describe her realistic life-size animal sculptures created using crochet.
Pieces she has previously made include ‘Bojo’, depicting Boris Johnson as a blond gorilla when he was Mayor of London, Prince Harry as a ginger baboon and three 25ft crocheted lions – which took two years to make – which toured the country in a mobile glass vehicle in 2012 for the London Olympics.
Also featuring at the Grade II listed tower, which has been refurbished and sits at the heart of Kings Hill's new retail centre, are camel heads by Joshua Gluckstein, bedecked with brightly coloured tassels.
These were inspired by the Pushkar camel fair in Rajasthan – where traders from all parts of India congregate and take part in, amongst many events, a camel beauty contest.
Recycling has always featured in his work and he has used a selection of second-hand materials – including jumpers, blankets and even a ‘onesie’ – to create the camels’ fur. All the decorations came from India.
These are exhibited alongside botanical paintings by Georgina Scott and paintings of fruit, vegetables and seeds by Suzanne Roles, which were influenced by 16th and 17th century Spanish still life artists.
There are also seascapes and landscapes of Margate by Dave Gowers; a large canvas by Fiona Stanbury, which was inspired by a trip to Riga; colour on colour canvasses by Claudia de Grandi and optical trickery and pattern by Rachel McDonnell.
Caroline Binns, of Kings Hill developer Liberty Property Trust, said: “This is one of the most unusual and fun exhibitions we have had so far in the Control Tower.
“Our professional curator, June Frickleton, has sourced an amazing variety of exhibits with something to appeal to everyone.”
The exhibition is open to the public between 9am and 5.30pm Monday to Friday and will run until January 22 when it will be replaced with a new exhibition.
All the works are for sale and details of each artist together with an example of their work is listed on the Kings Hill exhibition site website.