From half-term for 10 weeks, the Ay Up Me Duck’ Trail is being hosted in 4 Amber Valley towns, including Belper. 

Here, Jo has interviewed some of the artists about how this project cam about and how they became involved and decided on their unique and stunning designs. Some of the artists are also children’s illustrators. 

Take a read and let us know which are your favourite ducks in the comments or if you have completed the trail. 

We start with Carla Dee, whose ‘Ay Up Duck’ is in Belper. 

Q: How did you hear about the Ay up me duck trail?

A: I saw a callout from Making Trails on social media inviting local artists to submit designs for the trail. Having previously painted sculptures for the Derby Ram Trail and the Newark Book Bench, I knew straight away I wanted to paint a giant duck especially if it meant having it somewhere local so I could visit it with family and friends.

Q: How did you come up with the design?

A: The design was one I had already created for the Belper Arts Trail, developed with the help of local residents who shared all the fun and quirky things that make their town special. The ‘Ayup Belper’ design features historical landmarks, from its Mills and riverside walks to the infamous goose, Camilla, the Belper Moo, and even Mr Potato Head (a gift from Pawtucket!).

Q: What was the process for being selected as one of the ducks on the trail?

A: Out of all the submissions received, 18 ducks were shortlisted for a public vote, with the eight most popular designs going on to be painted. I was absolutely thrilled when I found out I’d been successful. I truly believe it was thanks to the people of Belper, along with my friends and family, who got behind me and helped make my dream a reality. Thank you to everyone who voted!

Q: What are you hoping will come from this local Amber Valley trail.

A: I’m already seeing beautiful photos of people of all ages enjoying the trail. It’s clearly increasing footfall in the towns and hopefully boosting spending in local shops too. I love outdoor sculpture trails and seeing art in everyday spaces, creativity should be accessible to everyone. I hope it inspires the next generation of doodlers! I also heard the launch day was incredibly busy, and the sun even made an appearance.

Q: What are the most rewarding parts of the job? Do you work with children at all?

A: I’m passionate about inspiring creativity in others, especially children and families. I regularly collaborate with schools, museums, and community groups to deliver hands-on workshops in digital art, drawing, painting, sculpture, and collage. Whether it’s murals, sculpture trails, or digital storytelling, I love creating art that sparks joy and encourages people to dream big.

Q: Claire’s School Solutions promoted the Love Lalaland display on our social media – how did it go?

I currently have an exhibition at the Level Centre in Matlock, a doodle-tastic interactive installation created with my friends from Derby QUAD. Having my first solo touring exhibition has been a dream come true, something I never imagined would actually happen. It has opened up so many opportunities and introduced my work to a much wider audience, which has been amazing.

Next, Chloe Breeze whose duck is called ‘Ay Up Duck in Derbyshire’.

Q: How did you come up with the design?

A: I create maps and timelines a lot within my work so knew I wanted my design to use that theme. I love using flowing lines and bright colours with little details that you keep spotting through my designs. I wanted to show my love of the outdoors/Derbyshire/Peak District through the design too.

Q: What are you hoping will come from this local Amber Valley trail?

A: Hopefully more opportunities to paint sculptures like this one and helping to enrich the local community through our designs.

Q: Tell us about your career as an artist leading up to this.

A: I have been a full time Illustrator for 5 years having started my business 8 years ago after graduating with a degree in Illustration from Staffordshire University.

Q: What are the most rewarding parts of the job? Do you work with children at all?

A: Working in the community and with children, I also love creating murals and larger artworks for public spaces. I love when I get messages from people explaining how my artwork has helped brighten their day in a tough time such as an NHS waiting room.

Rebecca Morledge has created the Derwent Duck, also in Belper situated very close to our old premises at Unity Mill. 

Q: How did you hear about the Ay up me duck trail?

A: I follow lots of arts organizations on Facebook and Instagram and saw the call out for artists made by Making Trails. I worked with Tilley from Making Trails in the past when I painted a carousel horse for an art trail at Burton and really enjoyed it. I really liked the idea of painting something for the town I live in, Belper.

 Q: How did you come up with the design?

A: I wanted to use the river as the main theme for my duck as it is such an important feature of the landscape and history of Belper and the Amber Valley. The mills of the Amber Valley were built where they are due to the river and towns that were built around them, they have had a huge impact on the growth of the area and that is all thanks to the River Derwent. Also, the wildlife around the river feature strongly in my design. We are so lucky to live so closely with nature here in the Amber Valley and wildlife here is thriving.

Q: What was the timescale for the creation of the ducks?

A: We were given 5 weeks to paint the duck before it went out into the wild.

Q: What are you hoping will come from this local Amber Valley trail?

A: I am hoping that the ducks will encourage people to visit the four towns involved in the trail and enjoy spotting the ducks while also exploring places they may not have visited before. I hope that the ducks will bring joy and make people smile

Q: Tell us about your career as an artist leading up to this.

A: I studied MA Illustration at Nottingham Trent University and enjoyed every moment. I love children’s book illustration and am strongly influenced by illustrators including Shirley Hughes and Quentin Blake. I have been painting local scenes including streets, buildings and people since 2009, I often paint pictures with a birds eye view.

I have painted several art trail sculptures including a ram, giraffe and a puffin.

Q: What are the most rewarding parts of the job? Do you work with children at all?

A: I love the painting process, the way the images appear and the paintings come together. I have worked with children running school workshops and a model building workshop at Derby Museum.

Q: Do you have any more exciting events coming up?

A: I’m taking part in Belper Art Trail at the start of May and also the new Ashbourne Art trail is happening at the end of May.

‘This view is all it’s quacked up to be’ is our next duck by Lisa Bentley.

Q: How did you come up with the design?

A; I wanted to make sure that the art I created had a link with Amber Valley and could tell a story. As an author and illustrator of children’s books that’s really important to me. I did a lot of research on things about the area that I wanted to know more about and one of them was John Flamsteed.  I also have a fascination with outer  space. To be honest it terrifies me and fascinates me in equal measure! It’s also something that my children love and so following this theme seemed like the perfect option.

Q: What are you hoping will come from this local Amber Valley trail?

A: I just hope that people will go out, have fun and enjoy the ducks! These art trails are fantastic for getting people out and about in the community and supporting the local areas. I’ve done many others with my children before and you get to explore places that you perhaps would never have been to before. It’s also lovely to talk to other people doing the trails. They open up so much conversation.

Q: Tell us about your career as an artist leading up to this.

A: I have always obsessively drawn and created things from a very early age. My natural education and career path was always going to be driven by art and so I ended up studying Illustration with animation at Loughborough University. From there, my path wasn’t so straight forward as breaking into the children’s book industry (which I was determined to do) wasn’t easy.  I became a primary school teacher and taught for eight years whilst quietly drawing and writing in the background. I then had two children of my own and realised it was time to give my dream 110%. I left my job and the rest is history! I got an agent, had my first children’s books published by Simon and Schuster and I have sold my books all over the world. I am very busy with lots of children’s books in progress and I also deliver workshops to schools and businesses throughout the year. Now I can add  “giant painted duck” to my portfolio!

Q: What are the most rewarding parts of the job? Do you work with children at all.

A: I deliver workshops in schools and also for a local arts charity so I work with children all the time. These are the most rewarding parts of the job, connecting with my clients! Nothing beats seeing a child’s reaction to your work especially if it’s something you have created for them. It’s also fabulous to be able to teach the next generation of artists and storytellers and pass on the knowledge I have. Seeing them create magic in my sessions is so incredible.

Next we learn about Sunset Over Amber Valley by Rachael and Phillippa Corcutt.

Q: How did you come up with the design?

A: The design is all about exploring those unexpected places and hidden gems when visiting a favourite place. We wanted to include lots of local wildlife on the design, it follows a family of ducks on an adventure across the wild, telling a story of the Amber Valley.

Q: What was the process of creating the duck?

A: We received the duck sculpture- which was beautiful. First we sketched out the design onto the sculpture and then its a process of building up layers of acrylic paint. We have a lovely sunset skyline on our design, this required quite a few coats of paint which we built up from the lighter yellows to the bright pink. Then the final part is adding the details.

Q: Tell us about your career as an artist leading up to this.

A: We are illustrators and twin sisters and work together as an illustration collective and creating illustrations for children’s books, magazines and greetings cards. Leading up to this we studied Illustration at the University of Derby and graduated with a First Class Degree. Following on from this we have worked with numerous clients including Scholastic publishing, Oxford University Press and Harper Collins. We have also painted over 60 sculptures for public art trails across the UK.

Q: What are the most rewarding parts of the job? Do you work with children at all?

A: We love seeing lots of people enjoying art, whenever that’s out and about on a sculpture trail or reading a book.

Q: Do you have any more exciting events coming up?

 A: We are working on two picture books that we are writing and illustrating with two lovely publishers. We also have a few more books in the pipeline and a couple of picture books that we have illustrated coming out very soon.

And finally, we hear from Oliver Jamin who is a contemporary artist who created ‘Duk N Luv’.

Q: How did you come up with the design?

A: Most of my work uses bright colours and draws inspiration from pop art culture. For the trail, I wanted to create something bold and eye-catching, using strong block lettering so it would stand out in all kinds of beautiful British weather. I chose the word “Love” because it’s simple, powerful, and personal, almost everyone connects to it in their own way.

Q: What are you hoping will come from this local Amber Valley trail?

A: I am hoping that it will increase footfall in the region and allow people to experience art who wouldn’t usually visit a gallery or museum. Hopefully this will also support local businesses and other public sites in the vicinity.
For me personally, I am always about raising awareness as a Deaf artist, being a role model for my community, showcasing my creativity and working alongside talented colleagues.

Q: Tell us about your career as an artist leading up to this.

A: I am a Birmingham-based, award-winning contemporary Deaf artist working across hand-drawn multicoloured artwork, video, photography, and design. My practice explores the interplay between colour, pattern, and visual communication, creating bold and expressive work that invites audiences to experience the world through a different sensory perspective.
I have produced a range of commissioned pieces such as large-scale fabric banners and community-engagement artworks for organisations including the Ironbridge Gorge Museum, Roundhouse Birmingham, Victoria Leeds, ASLI, and Midlands Arts Centre.

As a strong advocate for inclusive practice,I collaborate with charities, museums, galleries, and cultural organisations to deliver BSL/Deaf-led tours, creative workshops, installations, and accessible video content that incorporates British Sign Language, captions, and voiceover. I often speak at conferences and events, and provide specialist consultancy on Deaf awareness, access, and inclusive arts practice.
Through my work, I aim to spark imagination, promote access to the arts, and champion the visibility of Deaf culture.

Q: What are the most rewarding parts of the job? Do you work with children at all?

I love meeting people and inspiring the next generation. I have delivered workshops for schools and also done community engagement events for all ages. I also like to be a role model especially for Deaf children and young people, showing them that it is possible to follow your dreams, and overcome the barriers faced in our world.

Blog written by Jo Gotheridge alongside the artists (25/2/26)