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Are you an artist with a passion for the university and Portsmouth? This is your chance to be a part of something truly special by taking part in our competition.
As part of the Portsmouth 100 centenary celebrations, Portsmouth City Council has commissioned a number of lions sculptures, that will be on display around the city.
The Pride of Portsmouth will be at the heart of the city’s centenary celebrations, connecting corporate, public and community partners around the city and providing a new and uniquely creative avenue for collaboration, businesses, community groups and education establishments are invited to sponsor a blank lion sculpture.
The University is sponsoring two of the lions, which will be located on campus and part of the art trail in summer 2026.
We are inviting talented students and staff from across the university to transform our lion's sculptures into works of art. If this is you then take part in our competition.
We are looking for creative concepts that reflect the spirit, stories and soul of the university, with bold, vibrant and family-friendly designs.
You can work as an individual or in collaboration with other students and/or members of staff.
The person/team commissioned will receive £200 towards materials and a £1,000 payment once the sculpture is completed and installed.
See below for more information on the competition and how to enter. Design entries much be received by cop Friday 27 February.
How the competition works
University of Portsmouth students and staff are invited to submit their proposal to transform our lions with individual artwork by cob Friday 27 February.
Submitted designs will be shortlisted and two designs selected.
The two successful artists (or collaborations) are then commissioned to apply their designs to the sculptures, either in their own studios or spaces, or in shared painting spaces provided by Portsmouth City Council.
The decorated lions will be installed on campus during the summer to form a free trail for all Portsmouth residents and visitors to explore.
The aim is to make art more accessible to people in the city, and we are looking for a diverse range of work to appeal to different demographics.
After bringing art to life, connecting with new audiences, entertaining and getting people outdoors, walking more, and sharing their stories, the sculptures will come together for a spectacular farewell event. It gives everyone a last chance to see the pride together, meet some of the artists involved, and maybe choose one to bid for at the auction.
Timeline:
Deadline for designs – Friday 27 February
Winner announced – week beginning 16 March
Decoration of the Lions by the winning artist – April and May
Deadline for completed Lion to be ready for installation – end of May (precise date tbc)
Your design
We specifically request that designs for The Pride of Portsmouth should represent and celebrate our unique city and University in some way. This could include:
- Portsmouth’s diverse communities.
- Portsmouth’s landmarks, architecture and environment.
- Historical figures and events associated with Portsmouth.
- Books, films, music, sport, artworks or other media associated with Portsmouth.
- Industries, crafts and skills associated with Portsmouth
Each artist/collaboration may submit up to two designs as part of their entry.
The design must be submitted using the sculpture template.
Please ensure you read the design and materials guidance when considering your competition entry.
The lion sculpture dimensions:
Height: 100cm Width: 60cm
Length: 175cm Weight: 40-50kg
The sculpture is manufactured from a single design moulding but there may be minor variations in dimensions.
Sculpture templates
How to apply
Using the sculpture template as a guide please supply up to two designs for consideration. All designs must be in the one of the following formats: PDF, JPG or PNG and in high resolution and not exceeding 2MB.
Submission must be made by completing the submission form no later than 11pm on Friday 27 February 2026.
Please also read the competition terms and conditions (below) before submitting your application.
If you have any questions please email staffnews@port.ac.uk or studentnews@port.ac.uk .
- You will be required to sign the standard terms and conditions as part of the collaboration with Portsmouth City Council.
- When planning your designs, they must be appropriate for public display; the audience will be wide ranging and of all ages. Designs that are overtly religious, political or sexual in nature will not be accepted.
- Additionally, neither corporate logos nor advertising is allowed.
- We cannot accept designs which infringe on third party intellectual property, i.e. recognisable brands, logos, personalities, franchises and characters etc.
- Your design should cover the whole lion sculpture and the top layer of the integrated plinth. Designs should not cover the lower layer of the plinth as this will be masked by information boards.
- Remember that the public will touch and interact with your sculpture! Therefore, any attachments must be robust and able to withstand this handling (including, potentially, the weight of an adult), not be likely to cause any injury, and must be durable in an outdoor environment.
- We will arrange to deliver and collect the sculpture from your studio or other painting space in the PO1-PO6 area. If your studio or space is outside the PO1-PO6 area, we can discuss delivery but there may be an additional charge. If you do not have a studio or other space suitable to paint your lion, we will provide painting spaces in Portsmouth (subject to availability).
- While we welcome all art forms, collage and/or sticking paper or paper-based products onto the sculpture is not as effective as painting or mosaics.
- Please consider this before submitting your design and be aware that most of the sculptures will be positioned outside for eight weeks exposed to the British weather.
- Artist materials are not provided, apart from the varnish. You will be expected to purchase your own materials using the £200 allocated budget. If a design is likely to cost more than £200 in materials, you can apply for additional materials budget via the application form.
- When placed on the streets, each sculpture is bolted to a plinth using fixings. Artists must keep the base area of the sculpture clear of any attachments.
- The use of acrylic or emulsion paint is recommended, although artificial resin paint or two component paint can also be used to paint or spray a design. To complete your sculpture, it must be finished with a waterproof, non-yellowing varnish which will be provided.
- If you are commissioned, you will be provided with an artist information pack and guidance to guide you through the selection and use of the correct art materials, as well as advice on how to varnish and protect your sculpture.
- Artists will not be responsible for placing their sculptures on the streets or collecting them once the trail has closed. We may offer artists first refusal to make any refurbishments or repairs during or after the event if a sculpture is damaged. If an artist is unavailable, it’s not practical or we have a maintenance contract in place, another suitably experienced artist will carry out this work.
- The project is open to all artists, amateur or professional. You must be aged 18 or over and living in the UK.
- You may submit up to two applications.
- All terms and conditions in this artists submission pack form a part of the agreement between you, Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art and by submitting your work you are agreeing to be bound by all terms and conditions in this information pack.
- You must be the sole author and owner of all intellectual property rights of the work entered, or if the work is not your own in full, you must have sole permission in writing from the copyright owner/s to use their work. Source material or proof of permission in use of another person’s work must be made available on request by the selection panel. Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art do not accept liability in the publication of any reproduced art.
- The design must represent a piece of work that you have the ability to reproduce on a 3D sculpture.
- Any additions or modifications to the sculpture must be sufficiently strong to maintain structural integrity of the sculpture and must not cause injury.
- To enter, the work must be received by the closing date of 12noon on Friday 2 January. All entries must be accompanied by a completed artist submission form.
- No allowances will be made for work that arrives later than the deadline.
- By completing the artist submission form and submitting your designs, you consent that all data provided by you may be used by University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art for marketing, communications and evaluation purposes unless you opt out in writing. We don’t, and never will, sell or pass on any of your details to another organisation for them to use for their own purposes. We may, however, use third party organisations to help deliver services on our behalf, for example, distributing our email newsletters or feedback questionnaires, or managing participant lists for our events. At all times we will ensure that we look after your details responsibly and that any organisations using your information on our behalf do the same.
- Copyright and all other IP Rights in the design belong to and remain with the artist. However, subject to Portsmouth City Council paying all amounts due to the artist under any final commissioning contract, the artist grants to Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art an irrevocable royalty free licence to use the completed artwork for purposes in connection with the event, The Pride of Portsmouth.
- You consent to the use of your work, name and photograph in any promotional material carried out by Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art without any further compensation.
- Your work will be reviewed and shortlisted by the University of Portsmouth and Portsmouth City Council
- Work will be commissioned by the University of Portsmouth following the shortlisting exercise. The decision on all matters relating to the work selected to be used is final. No further correspondence will be entered in to.
- Upon commissioning, Portsmouth City Council will enter a separate service level agreement with you to include an agreed schedule and the terms and conditions of engagement.
- Portsmouth City Council will provide the sculpture at no charge to you, along with £200 towards the cost of materials. In exceptional circumstances it may be agreeable to provide additional materials budget for designs that go beyond the expected scope. This will be considered on a case-by-case basis and must be agreed in writing before starting work. The purchase of materials is your responsibility except for varnish, which will be provided. Unless otherwise agreed by both parties in writing.
- Portsmouth City Council will work with you to coordinate and manage the safe and secure transportation of the sculpture to your own studio or other suitable painting space in the most cost-effective way. Artists may be expected to pay all or a proportion of delivery charges to and from the event storage if the sculpture needs to be transported outside of Portsmouth (PO1-PO6). This is at the discretion of Portsmouth City Council and should be finalised before any commission is confirmed. Payment of delivery charges can be deducted from the final invoice amount.
- If you do not have a space in which you can paint the sculpture, Portsmouth City Council will provide painting spaces for artists. This is subject to availability.
- You will provide a list of artist materials – specifically paint, brand and colours used in the application on the sculpture. Any unused or bespoke mixed colours should be boxed up, labelled with your sculpture and artist name and returned with the sculpture to aid in onward care/maintenance.
- Portsmouth City Council reserves the right to withhold any fee payable to you in connection with the event if in its sole opinion the quality of the finished work provided falls below that which can be reasonably expected for public display and/or is substantially different from the design submitted.
- The sculpture remains at all times the property of Portsmouth City Council and must be returned in good order
- If the sculpture is returned unfinished by you or deemed irreparable due to damage while in your possession, you shall be charged the full replacement cost of said sculpture.
- Portsmouth City Council will award commissioned artists with an honorarium of £1,000 +VAT (if applicable) in addition to up to £200 for materials. This will be paid on completion of the finished artwork, subject to sign off, and all relevant paperwork. Payment will be made within 28 working days of receipt of invoice. Portsmouth City Council will consider, at our discretion, staged payments on a case-by-case basis.
- All participating artists will be required to provide an invoice, to include the commission fee and materials, and any additional agreed fees for engagement activity, on receipt of the completed sculpture by PCC, unless otherwise agreed.
- Portsmouth City Council will consider, at our discretion, advanced payment of material fees following acceptance of agreement and completion of the artist’s contract.
- Invoicing details will be included in the artist’s contract.
- Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art may from time to time produce facsimiles of the completed sculpture in both 2D and 3D form. For the avoidance of doubt, any agreement reached in connection with any facsimile of your design should include any consideration to be paid to you by Portsmouth City Council and require transfer of rights to Portsmouth City Council.
- Following the event, some of the sculptures may be auctioned to raise money for local charities.
- Portsmouth City Council will, where practicable, try to offer artists first refusal to undertake repair and maintenance work should the applicable sculpture require it, but in most instances suitably experienced local artists will be commissioned separately by the council to complete any agreed maintenance and repairs. There is no obligation for artists to do repairs unpaid, the contract is fulfilled on successful sign off and return of the completed sculpture.
- By entering your work for consideration to be selected to be used in the event and for eligibility for payment of the honorarium you warrant that you have all required rights and consents to submit the work and allow Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art to use the work in connection with the Council. You also agree to grant an irrevocable royalty-free licence to Portsmouth City Council and Wild In Art and to use the completed work for the purposes described elsewhere connected with the event.
- Artists should not publicly share any designs submitted as part of an application to be part of the Pride in Portsmouth art trail in advance of the shortlisting process. Commissioned artists are then asked not to share their designs publicly in advance of the start of the trail.