Iconic chalk giant gets hillside companion

Artist Becca Gill who created the figure said she hoped it would make its creators and viewers feel like giants by coming together in appreciation of nature

An ancient chalk giant carved into a hillside has gained a temporary companion as part of a £40,000 arts project.

The 'Consequences' figure, next to the Cerne Abbas Giant in Dorset, was created on canvases from artwork by asylum seekers, schoolchildren and people with learning disabilities.

The groups, from Yeovil, Somerset, helped to compose the figure from materials they collected from the giant's hill, including chalk, flowers and butterfly wings.

The commissioned work is part of the national Nature Calling arts project, which aims to make people feel connected to well-known landscapes.

The new hillside figure has eyes made of flowers, butterfly ears, tentacle legs and a petal for each of the asylum seekers who composed its heart

Artist Becca Gill, from Bath, Somerset, who created the figure, said she hoped it would make its creators and viewers feel like giants by coming together in appreciation of nature.

She said: "Even though the groups live in Yeovil, a few miles away, none of them had been to the Cerne Abbas Giant before.

"Their reactions were extraordinary. One non-verbal child spoke for the first time.

"The asylum seekers and refugee children were able to play, be joyful and be giant."

The new hillside figure, which is genderless unlike its famously male counterpart, has eyes made of flowers, butterfly ears, tentacle legs and a petal for each of the asylum seekers who composed its heart.

Ms Gill and colleagues amalgamated the contributors' drawings and collages to create the final image.

It was then printed onto four canvases, covering an area of 30m x 40m (100ft x 130ft), about three-quarters of the height of the Cerne Abbas Giant.

Funding came from the Arts Council and Dorset National Landscape, which receives money from the government and Dorset Council.

The artwork will be dismantled later before touring the region.

On 13 and 14 September, it can be seen on Summerhouse Hill in Yeovil, which is staging a celebratory parade, before moving to Corfe Castle the following weekend.

The figure was created on canvases from artwork by asylum seekers, schoolchildren and people with learning disabilities