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THE HAWKINGE GIANT

If you have ever dreamed of seeing a real giant, you will be delighted to know that Hawkinge will soon be home to a very large resident.

Strange Cargo Arts Company has been invited by the Hawkinge Partnership to spend threeweeks in the village, during which time they will be making a fabulous 13 foot tall Giant who is destined to become a permanent resident.

Strange Cargo¹s team of artists has been working with a dedicated group of locals for a couple of weeks, learning about the history of the village, in order to develop the look and character of the Giant.

To encourage people to be part of this project, Torrent, who was the first East Kent Giant to be created in 2002, and has kindly been loaned by the people of Littlebourne to help locals get a better idea of what to expect over the coming weeks.

The artist team, together with a team of participants, are based in the Leisuredrome and have been sawing wood, weaving withies, gluing, hammering, sewing as the giant slowly emerges.

An open afternoon will take place today (16 February) at Hawkinge Leisuredrome in Aerodrome Road between 2pm and 7pm, where the artist team will be on hand to meet and greet visitors young and old, who are interested in getting acquainted with our big friend.

There will be activities for people to join in and a chance to see how the project is progressing.

In addition to the fabulous Hawkinge Giant, three 'Big Heads' are also being created. These triplets are destined to live in Churchill, Hawkinge and Selsted primary schools and will come along and join the giant on the occasion of festivals and outings as special companions.

As Hawkinge has such a close history with flying, both through the name of the village, and the Aerodrome, pupils from each school are helping to dress the giant by making personally embellished metal feathers.

The Hawkinge Giant project has been made possible through the generous support of the Hawkinge Partnership, and the MakeItReal initiative that is funded through The National Lottery, Arts Council England, Millennium Commission and Canterbury City Council.

For more information please call Brigitte or Lisa at Strange Cargo on 01303 244533, or Deirdre Ferguson at the Hawkinge Partnership on 01303 852370.