Claire Ward Thornton

Claire is a London-based illustrator and print designer with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art from the University of Plymouth and Exeter. She has extensive experience in the arts as a freelance artist (in partnership) on the live art scene, as well as experience working in theater, television and film and on large-scale outdoor events. Claire is an experienced scenic painter and has worked on commission on a variety of murals and assisting other artists. Claire ran an arts and mental health charity for six years, bringing music and theater into hospitals and day centers. Her design label “CWT” features fabrics and a collection of handmade products for retail.

When Hackney Council began thinking about improving the urban landscape with planting, they asked residents on Wilton Way for feedback. Plants that attracted essential pollinators were key to public opinion.

A bee, a butterfly and a hummingbird are among the tiny creatures, some of whose species are under increasing threat of survival due to climate change, habitat loss and pesticides.

The bird pictured is a hummingbird of no specific sub-species, but representing the whole family. The ruby-throated hummingbird is the most common hummingbird of the species. This bird was chosen for this mural as an emblematic pollinator following conversations with local residents. The hummingbird overlooks the mural entitled ‘Tiny Principals of Nature‘, which depicts a scene of plants, animals, infrastructure and human activities. The mural is located on Wilton Way in Hackney, East London.

The concept of the mural ‘Tiny Principals of Nature’ appreciates the tiny details and celebrates their importance by painting them larger than life in vivid colour. It’s a reminder to take notice, interest and care of the beauty, purpose and fragility of all living things. A call to action: to collectively play our part in preventing further losses to the natural world.

This large scale public art mural was produced by Art Hoppers in partnership with Hackney Council in Hackney, London. The mural, designed and painted by Claire Ward-Thornton, represents the Council’s ethos for introducing and enhancing green infrastructure and creating long-lasting playful spaces in the borough.

ACT “Your Birds, Our Birds” Campaign

The ‘Your Birds, Our Birds’ campaign was launched at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille in September 2021. To spread the impact of this initiative across Europe, ACT has inaugurated the launch of its campaign by inviting all network partners to call upon their local communities of artists, scientists and civic organizations to propose murals of endangered birds. Inspired by the mural by the artist Fikos, in Marseille, implemented by COAL, partner of the ACT network, on the occasion of the IUCN World Conservation Congress, the partners of the network are to propose their mural project.

Photo credits : Pau Ros