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Coraline's Curious Cat Trail

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Coraline's Curious Cat Trail is a temporary art installation in Portland, Oregon, United States. Slated for public viewing across the city from August 2 to October 13, 2024, the installation features approximately 30 statues of cats by various artists, inspired by the 2009 animated film Coraline. Following public display, the sculptures will be auction off with proceeds benefitting Oregon Health & Science University's Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

The project is a collaborative effort by the hospital, the Hillsboro-based production company Laika behind Coraline, Downtown Portland Clean and Safe, Visit Downtown, and art installation producer Wild in Art. Final designs were selected from 80 submissions. Project sponsors include The Oregonian and advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy.

Description

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Following public display, the project's cat statues will be auctioned off with proceeds benefitting Doernbecher Children's Hospital (main entrance pictured in 2010)

Described as an "interactive art trail",[1] Coraline's Curious Cat Trail is a temporary art installation in Portland, Oregon. It features 30 cat statues inspired by the feline character Cat in the 2009 animated film Coraline, which is based on the 2002 novella of the same name by Neil Gaiman and was the first feature film produced by Hillsboro-based Laika, LLC. Various artists hand-painted and otherwise decorated the approximately 6-foot-tall fiberglass sculptures,[2][3][4] and each is unique. The sculptures are slated to be on public display for ten weeks (August 2 to October 13, 2024), after which they will be sold at auction with proceeds benefitting Doernbecher Children's Hospital.[5]

Coraline's Curious Cat Trail also includes an app with a map of the statues and other features,[5] as well as a custom website and playlist on Spotify.[4] In addition to being a fundraiser, the project is part of an effort to revitalize downtown Portland, according to the leader of Portland Metro Chamber.[6][7]

Locations and statues

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Statues are installed throughout Portland, including at the International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park and at Pittock Mansion in the Tualatin Mountains. In downtown Portland, sculptures are installed at Director Park, Jamison Square, the North Park Blocks, Pioneer Courthouse Square, Pioneer Place, the Portland Art Museum, Portland City Hall, Portland Saturday Market, Skidmore Fountain, Tom McCall Waterfront Park (including Salmon Street Springs), and the World Trade Center.[5] Artworks were also installed outside the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and at Pride Plaza, outside the Crystal Ballroom.[8]

A statue designed by Katy Hughes, a lead scenic painter at Laika, and Rosie Chambers, a young patient at OHSU's Doernbecher Children's Hospital, depicts a blue cat with a pink nose and ears, as well as eyes with pink roses and small black spots inspired by the film's character Other Mother. It was unveiled outside OHSU South Waterfront.[5]

Celeste Potgieter painted two statues. One features a "fanciful" map depicting Oregon landmarks such as Cannon Beach, the Columbia River Gorge, Crater Lake, and the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. The other, called Keep Portland Weird, and has blue zebra stripes, glitter, a unicorn hat, local imagery, and a depiction of Bigfoot.[4]

Rae Sheridan's Jean-Michel Basquiat-inspired sculpture, called Infinity Kitty, has large blue and purple eyes. Sheridan was motivated by giving others "a sense of hope".[4] Another statue was designed by Arielle Wilkins, a senior designer at the advertising agency and project sponsor Wieden+Kennedy. Her cat statue was decorated with hundreds of colorful resin flowers. Wilkins said she was motivated to "show the vibrancy" and "the sparkle of Portland".[4]

History

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Teri Hatcher (pictured in 2019), who voiced characters in Coraline, attended the project's countdown event in February 2024

Coraline's Curious Cat Trail is a collaborative effort by Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Laika, Downtown Portland Clean and Safe, Visit Downtown,[7] and the art installation producer Wild in Art.[5] The project coincides with the fifteenth anniversary of the release of Coraline.[4][9] It marks the first art trail installation in the United States for Wild in Art, which is based in the United Kingdom.[10]

In February 2024, project collaborators hosted a countdown event. Actress Teri Hatcher, who voiced the Coraline characters Mother, Other Mother, and The Beldam, attended the event and said the project brought people together.[1][11][10] A call for artists issued in March 2024 resulted in 80 design submissions. Project sponsors, which included The Oregonian / OregonLive.com and Wieden+Kennedy, helped select the final designs.[4]

The project's launch event was held at a plaza outside OHSU South Waterfront on August 2, 2024. Artists, sponsors, and other supporters of the project were in attendance. The statue by Hughes and Chambers was unveiled at the event.[5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "'Coraline' themed art trail will celebrate Oregon animators behind film's creation". KGW. 2024-02-23. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  2. ^ "Portland celebrates beloved LAIKA film's anniversary with Coraline's Curious Cat Trail". KATU. 2024-08-02. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  3. ^ "Coraline's Curious Cat Trail". KATU. 2024-08-02. Archived from the original on 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Turnquist, Kristi (2024-08-02). "'Coraline's Curious Cat Trail' artists hope installation will restore Portland 'sparkle'". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Turnquist, Kristi (2024-08-02). "'Coraline's Curious Cat Trail' features cat statues strutting their stuff around Portland". The Oregonian. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  6. ^ Seymore, Jami (February 22, 2024). "'Coraline' cat sculptures to help revitalize downtown Portland". KOIN.
  7. ^ a b Deml, Jenna (August 1, 2024). "Dozens of 'Coraline' cat sculptures to appear in Downtown Portland". KOIN. Archived from the original on August 5, 2024. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  8. ^ "Thirty cat statues have been placed around downtown Portland as part of "Coraline's Curious Cat Trail, "an art installation put on by Laika, the Visit Downtown Campaign, OHSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital, and Wild in Art". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2024-08-14. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  9. ^ Turnquist, Kristi (2024-08-14). "Watch: A 'Coraline' fan created a live-action version of a scene from the animated classic". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2024-08-22. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  10. ^ a b Townsley, Nancy (2024-02-21). "'Coraline's Curious Cat Trail' coming to Portland in August". Portland Tribune. Pamplin Media Group. Archived from the original on 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  11. ^ Turnquist, Kristi (2024-02-22). "Cat sculptures inspired by Laika's classic 'Coraline' are coming to Portland this summer". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2024-08-16. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
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video icon 'Coraline' themed cat trail coming to downtown Portland in August on YouTube, KGW
video icon Dozens of ‘Coraline’ cat sculptures to appear in Downtown Portland on YouTube, KOIN
video icon 'Coraline' cat sculptures to help revitalize downtown Portland on YouTube, KOIN
video icon LAIKA announces 'Coraline's Curious Cat Trail' art installation in Portland on YouTube, KPTV
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