Kites made to remember people lost during pandemic

Kites with the faces of those who died during the Covid-19 pandemic on them are to be flown in a special event.

'Ascension' is a memorial project created by artist Luke Jerram.

On 23 March, the four-year anniversary of the first UK lockdown, the kites will be flown at a memorial event in Bristol.

Mr Jerram said he hoped it would give people the opportunity to grieve when "much of the world is moving on" from the pandemic.

He added: "There's something wonderful about flying kites. It's a way for me to help connect the ground, to the sky."

At the start of 2024, people were asked to contribute photographs of someone they had lost during the Covid-19 pandemic who they want to remember.

Around 20 special memorial kites have since been made, using black and white portraits sewn on to the colourful kites, which will be flown by family and friends.

Mr Jerram has a long history of creating much talked-about art, including placing a giant water slide on Park Street in the centre of Bristol in 2014.

He said he hoped the act of flying a kite "may act as a form of healing for those taking part and for those watching".

"The images include photographs of people when they were old and photos from the 1940s when they were in their prime," he said.

"They really show people's personalities.

"There are veterans from the Second World War and there's a husband and wife who both died of Covid - they will be flown together."

"For this arts project, each kite line physically and symbolically connects the participant flying the kite with the person represented on it," he said.

"Like neural pathways, the act of holding the line can be compared to the way we hold onto memories of the individuals we have lost."