Art Trail
About the big sheep trail
Get ready to be a part of the Flock as Christchurch becomes home to the Big Sheep Trail, a free, fun, accessible, public art trail adventure featuring Shaun the Sheep sculptures.
From mid-January until the end of March 2027, these ewe-niquely designed sculptures will leave the farm and come to city, transforming Ōtautahi-Christchurch into a colourful open-air gallery for locals and visitors alike.
The big sheep trail CountDown
The Big Sheep Trail comes to Christchurch on 16 January – 29 March 2027.
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A city-wide adventure
The trail will feature 30 Big Shaun the Sheep sculptures, each designed and painted by talented artists and sponsored by local businesses. These larger-than-life sculptures will mostly be located around the Christchurch city centre, with a few appearing at key locations across the wider city.
As well as them, there will be at least 30 Little Shaun sculptures, designed and painted by Christchurch school children as part of the Big Sheep Trail learning programme. Together, the Big and Little Shauns will form an art adventure celebrating creativity, community, and connection.
Explore the trail
Families, friends, visitors, and workplaces will be able to explore the trail at their own pace, discovering sculptures, collecting them on the official trail app and uncovering the stories behind each design.
To help guide the adventure, trail maps will be available through the Big Sheep Trail app and in printed form, making it easy to plan your route and see how many Shaun the Sheep you can herd together!
Whether you spend an afternoon exploring the city or venture out multiple times to track down every sculpture, the trail is designed to be free, fun and accessible for everyone.
How the trail works
Exploring the Big Sheep Trail is easy and completely free.
Download the Big Sheep Trail app or pick up a printed trail map and start collecting Shaun the Sheep across Christchurch. As you explore, you can tick off each Shaun you find, discover the artists behind the designs, read about amazing Big Brothers Big Sisters matches, and collect rewards from trail sponsors along the way.
Many visitors like to complete the trail over several outings, exploring different areas of the city each time – while some love the challenge of collecting the whole flock in the shortest time possible! Whether you find a handful of Shauns or track down all of them, the Big Sheep Trail will be a fun adventure for everyone.
What happens after the trail?
Once the 10-week trail ends, the flock will be herded together for one last time during the special Farewell Weekend.
This will give the public a chance to see all the Big and Little Shaun the Sheep in one place before they head to the gala charity auction.
The gala auction is a key part of the Big Sheep Trail as it’s the major fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Christchurch. Proceeds from this night will help to expand their mahi, creating and supporting more mentoring matches, enabling all young people realise their full potential.
In other words, the fun of the trail helps create real and lasting impact for young people in our community.
Important Dates
- 26 March 2026 The BIG Sheep Trail officially launched
- Term two 2026 School’s Programme rolls out
- 28 June 2026 Artists design submissions due
- 16 January – 29 March 2027 The BIG Sheep Trail is live!
- 10 – 11 April 2027 Farewell weekend
- 15 April 2027 Auction
What you can expect
The Gala Auction is a key part of the Big Sheep Trail as it’s the major fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Christchurch.
Proceeds from this night will help to expand their mahi, creating and supporting more mentoring matches, enabling all young people realise their full potential. In other words, the fun of the trail helps create real and lasting impact for young people in our community.
