Mighty dragon on the move
A giant dragon will take to the streets of the city on Friday (13 September 2013) to move to its new home in Jubilee Library.
The six metre dragon model, with a wingspan of ten metres, will be greeting visitors to the library from this weekend. The magnificent specimen has been created by Bec Britain from local community arts charity Same Sky. The dragon installation marks the beginning of the Libraries Services’ contribution to the 2013 City Reads celebration.
On Saturday 14 September, a free drop-in event is being held at the library to encourage families to meet the dragon, talk about reading and add the first dragon scales. The event is being led by Young Same Sky from 11am to 4pm.
People are invited to visit the dragon to help cover its hide in decorative scales during library opening hours until Sunday 6 October. The dragon will also be lit internally to give a colourful inner glow to the beast.
The dragon will be carried through the city on Friday afternoon to be installed at the library ahead of the public access from the weekend. The dragon is currently in large component parts (the body and two wings are separate) at the Same Sky studio. It is a very plain dragon at present - a structure of white paper, glue and willow - ready for the addition of scales.
Each year the City Reads team selects a book, encouraging people in Brighton & Hove to read a copy and join in events associated with the chosen title. This year’s book is Terry Pratchett’s Guards! Guards!, the eighth book in the popular and long running Discworld series. The story features a giant dragon causing havoc in the fictional city of Ankh-Morpork and the antics of the City Watch trying to restore order amid chaos.
Cllr Geoffrey Bowden, Chair of the Economic Development and Culture Committee, said: “The dragon is a fabulous focal point for people to find out more about this year’s City Reads book. Jubilee Library is welcoming to all residents of the city and a dragon will be an interesting guest for the next few weeks. It’s great to see creative groups across Brighton & Hove working together in such a fun way with the serious underlying aim of encouraging a passion for reading. The pen is mightier than the sword, even the swords of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch.”
The Brighton & Hove City Council Library Service has been working with groups across Brighton & Hove to share the magic of Pratchett’s dragon tale and start conversations about reading. Dads’ groups have been targeted for inclusion in the project and free events are set to take place at Rottingdean, Moulsecoomb and Hangleton libraries.
More information:
In the case of poor weather, the time of the move may need to change to protect the dragon.
Brighton & Hove City Council Library Services
The free reading events, open to all, are taking place on:
- Thursday 19 September, 5 to 6.30pm, Rottingdean Library, The Grange, Rottingdean
- Saturday 21 September, 11am to 12.30pm, Moulsecoomb Library, The Highway, Moulsecoomb
- Saturday 28 September, 11am to 12.30pm, Hangleton Library, West Way, Hangleton
Dads’ groups included in the reading project include Dads Connect, A Band of Brothers, Everyman UK and Men’s Network.
The dragon was created by Same Sky artist Bec Britain and the dragon will change colour due to a bespoke lighting created by John Varah, Same Sky’s director
The key City Reads event is a rare appearance by Sir Terry Pratchett, at the Brighton Dome on Sunday 29 September.
Quotes from Guards! Guards!
“The great dragon danced and spun and trod the air over the city. Its colour was moonlight, gleaming off its scales. Sometimes it would twist and glide with deceptive speed over the rooftops for the sheer joy of existing.”
“Nothing in the world should have been able to fly like that. The wings thumped up and down with a noise like potted thunder, but the dragon moved as though it was idly sculling through the air. If it stopped flapping, the movement suggested, it would simply glide to a halt. It floated not flew. For something the size of a barn with an armour-plated hide, it was a pretty good trick.”