Students excentric art work brings festive joy to Leeds bar
The student's giraffe in Cuckoo
Escapism Bar Group, the group behind seven independents bars in Leeds, has teamed up with RE: at Leeds City College to commission several artworks for its venues.
RE: equips students with the skills and knowledge they need to create unique, handmade and sustainable products. The initiative looks at preserving the future through upcycling, refurbishing and educating, taking products and materials that would otherwise go to landfill and giving them a new lease of life.
The artwork will be on display inside Cuckoo, Brooklyn and The Maven bars on Call Lane in Leeds city centre until after the Christmas period.
Cuckoo will feature an 9ft giraffe floor lamp, complete with neon paintwork and a giant star. Guests are invited to take a picture with the giraffe and share it on social media tagging @cuckooleeds, to be in with a chance to win a free bottomless brunch for two.
A wooden jackalope will be installed at The Maven. A jackalope is a winter creature from North American folklore, characterised by its jackrabbit body and antelope ears. The Maven is giving followers the opportunity to name the jackalope from December 1, to be in with a chance of winning a cocktail experience for two.
RE: has also created a reimagined R&B Statue of Liberty installed inside New York-inspired sports bar, Brooklyn.
Grant Dexter, managing director of Escapism Bar Group, said: “We were looking to do something different this year for our Christmas displays, and then we spotted work by RE: in the city.
“We thought this would be a great opportunity for us to team up and support a fantastic local organisation, whilst also producing some unique bespoke art for our venues.”
Steven Whitehouse, marketing and funding manager at RE, said: “Working with not one, but three local bars on this project was great fun and a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase the work we are doing with the students to a larger audience.
“Our talented students really helped bring the concepts to life and are really excited to see their work within the city.”