Patrick surprises 2millionth visitor at Walker Art Gallery
Today, Friday 4 December, 2009 Patrick the Penguin made a special visit to the Walker Art Gallery to greet the 2 millionth visitor this year to National Museums Liverpool (NML) venues. After that he paid a visit to World Museum to celebrate its nomination for the Guardian Kids in Museums Award.
Anna Yates, age 5, from Ormskirk was the lucky recipient of a cuddly penguin and other goodies. She was visiting the Big Art for Little Artists area with her younger sister, Sarah and her Grandparents.
David Fleming, director of National Museums Liverpool said, “By the end of 2009 more than 2million people will have visited one of our seven venues. That’s a huge number of people – enough to fill Anfield or Goodison Park about 45 times over.
“The high visitor figures alone prove that people really enjoy our museums. This recognition from visitors is fantastic, and to be nominated by Kids in Museums is another sign of our success.”
Patrick is the young environmentally concerned Rock Hopper Penguin from the Falkands, who is representing Go Penguins, the celebratory public art event taking place throughout Liverpool, St Helens and the Wirral during the festive season.