Thornton Court Pigs
Art In Newcastle City Centre, Tyne And Wear
Steel Truffle Pigs and Mushroom Statues hidden in Newcastle Centre by the Men of Steel blacksmith Graeme Hopper.
Sometimes when exploring an area you come across something unexpected, the Thornton Court Pig and Mushroom Statues are one such example!
Hidden within the centre of the city, nestled between St Mary's Cathedral and the Tyne Theatre and Opera House are steel statues of Truffle Pigs and Tall Mushrooms.
The steel sculptures are by blacksmith Graeme Hopper whose work includes the Men of Steel by the Stadium of Light, the Gruffalo at Hardwick Park, the Millennium Bug at Durham Botanical Gardens and a similarly large Bug at Newton Aycliffe. He also has works at Chester-Le-Street's Riverside Park.
Graeme started out his Blacksmith career with a four year apprenticeship, I suspect that is quite different to the image I have in my head of forging swords!
He also has royal approval, King Charles added a fungi sculpture gifted to him to the royal collection after seeing one of Graeme's sculptures in Middlesbrough and enquiring as to the artist!
The sculptures feature as part of the Crown Wildlife Garden and is managed by Places for People as green space for residents at Thornton Court.
The garden space is split into two. The top half features the Truffle Pigs and Mushrooms whilst the bottom half has a small pond and box hedge. A little green space right in the heart of the city!
If you look closely at the parking area by the gardens you'll see a sculptured mushroom fence which compliments the sculptures themselves!
Graeme Hopper spoke specifically about the Truffle Pigs and Mushrooms to Living North.
He explained that he is passionate about working with people and that he "likes to involve local communities". He stayed that "once they're involved it becomes their piece of art, and they get to live with it."
On the Pig and Mushrooms he recalled how he "worked with the local community on that one" and how "they came out to the workshop, visited the forge and took part in hands-on work".
The Pig and Mushrooms are a great example of community and public artwork hidden in the city centre of Newcastle!
Get 2 points if you have visited this place. Already visited by 17 VIPs.
Login to the VIP area to add places to your bucket list, mark them as visited and more importantly see where you rank on the league table.
How To Find Thornton Court Pig and Mushrooms
Where Is Thornton Court Pig and Mushrooms?
Lat / Long
54.969801, -1.620044
What three words
Where To Park For Thornton Court Pig and Mushrooms?
Lat / Long
54.969963, 54.969963
What three words
Any city centre parking, the statue is located close to St Mary's Cathedral.
Contributed by Sean Linley
A keen walker and wildlife enthusiast and dog dad originally from Leeds but a Newcastle resident for 10 years with a passion for history and heritage. Always curious about my local area and always on the lookout for something new. You’ll often find me studying the OS map for new places to explore!
More Places from Sean
More Places In Newcastle City Centre
Find more fabulous places in Newcastle City Centre, Tyne And Wear and if you know of a place we haven't listed, then let us know.
Blue Carpet
Art Newcastle City Centre Tyne And WearA blue carpet made out of crushed glass outside of the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle. Part of an urban art project and created by Thomas Heatherwick.
Ever Changing
Art Newcastle City Centre Tyne And WearAn abstract sculpture by Eilis O'Connell of a conical, polished stainless-steel sculpture.
Grainger Market
Building Newcastle City Centre Tyne And WearA covered market in Newcastle City centre, designed by John Dobson and opened in 1835. Once the largest covered market in the country.
More Art
So this art wasn't enough and you want more? Don't worry we have you covered.
Giant Spoon Cramlington
Art Cramlington NorthumberlandA giant 15 foot spoon in between two fields near Cramlington and Seghill as part of a National Lottery funded art trail.
What Lies Beneath Us
Art Durham County DurhamA large scale pavement map showing the geology of The British Isles.
The Laing Art Gallery
Art Newcastle City Centre Tyne And WearA free art gallery in the centre of Newcastle housing works by Henry Moore, Thomas Bewick, Norman Cornish, Richard Hamilton and Charles Napier Hemy among others.
Never Miss A Fabulous Place
If you are afraid of missing out on all the fabulous places we post, or just want to be the first to know, then sign up to the Fabulous North.
Each week we will email you all the brand new places that we visit.
Sign Up To Alerts
Find Us On Facebook
We post all our new places daily on our Facebook Groups page, so join the group today and be notified when we add a new place.
Join Our Facebook GroupThornton Court Pig and Mushrooms was listed in Art // Tyne And Wear // Newcastle City Centre