Southend City College Artist Designs "Flowering" Penguin for "Waddle-on-Sea"

Public Art Event in aid of Havens Hospices Takes Place Across the City

Unless you have recently relocated to Mars, you won't have missed the sudden appearance of over 100 colourful penguins that have popped up all over Southend! So, we're proud to announce that "Waddle-on-Sea" features two penguins designed by our very own students. One of these, Olianne Smith, is a 16-year-old artist studying Level 2 Art & Design at our Southend Campus, and we caught up with her at the launch of her own penguin, "Kytka" at The Forum, Southend. 

Olianne, your penguin is beautiful! Why is it called "Kytka"?
It's based on a Lily which is my favourite flower. "Kytka" means flower in the Czech language - my family is from the Czech Republic;  they come from a town called Karlovy Vary.

What was the inspiration for your design?
I love to paint flowers and the idea of a flower blossoming, growing from a small seed into something beautiful is something that inspires me and my art. The design also symbolises the tribal art style I use a lot.

How did you come to be chosen to represent the college?
We were asked to submit our designs to our teacher and mine was selected from about 30 entries. I knew straight away that I wanted to paint a flower of some kind.

Has your course at the college helped your approach to this project?
Yes definitely, it’s taught me how to have more confidence in my work and to be less shy about developing ideas.

Finally, what sort of career would you like to have?
I'd really like to be an artist and sell my work commercially and hopefully influence people through my art. I hope that the artwork I've created for this project will inspire people.

The penguin trail features 31 large penguin sculptures alongside 72 baby sculptures: all dotted across Southend-on-Sea and Leigh-on-Sea. The sculptures are displayed in a variety of locations, including Southend’s high street, iconic pier and seafront, and Leigh-on-Sea, until Wednesday 3 September. Haven's Hospice told us: "The event’s penguin sculptures were chosen because of their caring and compassionate nature. They are the perfect symbol of Havens Hospices’ values and Care Teams, who work tirelessly to make every day count for the people and families they care for 24 hours a day, 365 days a year".

At the end of the trail, the penguins will be auctioned off to raise vital funds for Havens Hospices. To find out more about Waddle-on-Sea, visit waddleonsea.co.uk.