
Perthshire artist seeks cute calves or lovely lambs
Perthshire artist Charlotte Brayley is in the final days of work on two sculptures for the Clan Cancer Support BookBench Trail.
But she's still open to offers of photographs of people, pets and even farm animals to depict on her artworks.
It is thought at least one of her masterpieces is destined for Aberdeen or Aberdeenshire.
So, given the north-east's rich agricultural heritage, we've decided to help put her in touch with budding 'models' from the farming community.
If you've a bonnie wee bantam, picture-perfect piglet, cute little calf or lovely little lamb on your farm, they could be immortalised on one of Charolotte's eye-catching benches.
There's no place for ageism here though, so Charlotte would equally love to see your some of your older animals.
Of course, farmers can send in photos of themselves, or some of their dogs or cats too.
Just a small donation is all it takes to be a part of this special piece of artwork.
Charlotte is an expert at turning pictures of people and animals into wonderful, cartoon-style illustrations.
Anyone interested in being featured in her two BookBench Trail sculptures should contact her on her Facebook or Instagram pages.
Alternatively you can send them – together with your contact details – to pj.farming@ajl.co.uk and we'll get them to Charlotte as soon as possible.
One of her benches has a strong Shetland theme. The talented artist is, therfore, keen to hear from any owners of Shetland sheep and ponies.
One of the her best-known subjects to date was Alan, her much-loved Suffolk sheep.
Alan, who died a few years ago, helped raise enough cash through the sale of some fabulous illustrations of him to pay for the bride's wedding gown, as well as bridesmaids' dresses and an outfit for the page boy when Charlotte and her husband, Matt, got hitched in 2018.
Charlotte and Matt now have a seven-acre smallholding at Balnalt, Comrie.
It is home to a few animals, including Teddy the cat and chickens Butt and Poop – named by the couple's young son.
But it's sheep that are Charlotte's passion – she told us she's been 'obsessed' with them since childhood.
She and Matt have two children – Fergus, eight and Freya, who is nearly four.
Clan's BookBench Trail will take place from July until September.
The cancer support charity will deliver the trail, featuring 42 sculptures across the north and north-east, in partnership with public art event specialist Wild in Art.
Following its completion in September, each of the sculptures will be sold at auction to raise money for Clan. Past trails involving colourful sculptures of dolphins, rabbits and Scottish comic book icon Oor Wullie have each raised huge sums of cash for the charity.
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