​A pride of lions will be welcomed to the streets of Bath tomorrow as 100 life-size models begin taking up residence for the summer.

The Lions of Bath public art project has been developed after a similar venture involving pig sculptures in 2008, with the animals decorated by a host of artists and sponosred by local organisations.

The first of the sculptures will be on the streets today and by mid-June all 100 of them will have taken up their positions on the streets.

One of the organisers of the project, Megan Witty, said she was impressed with the different designs which have been created this year.

She said: “The 100 sculptures we sent out as blank canvasses have been transformed into wonderful works of art by our talented artists and crafts people.

“The creativity is breathtaking, from glorious mosaic effects, powerful thought-provoking messages to the brilliant harnessing of new technologies and sheer visual fun.”

One of the creative forces is homeware and clothing designer Cath Kidston, who has lent her talents to the Imperial Nannies.

The lion, which has been named Impy by staff at the agency in Charles Street, carries the union jack flag in the style of Cath Kidston’s designs and will stand outside Russell and Bromley in Milsom Street.

Katherine Shields, founder of Imperial Nannies, which has been in Bath for two years, said: “We were absolutely delighted that Cath Kidston offered to design our lion, and we are so pleased with the result.”

Kidston added: “I was thrilled to be approached by Imperial Nannies to design one of the 100 Lions of Bath and I look forward to seeing the lion standing proud.”

Other artists who have decorated models for this year’s event include Sir Peter Blake, whose lion will be displayed at Victoria Art Gallery, Olympic gold medallist Amy Williams, who has painted the Bath Rugby lion Medallion and Lord Bath, who has decorated two of the sculptures with his attraction Longleat sponsoring the scheme.

Meanwhile the Norland Nursery’s lion will be installed outside the Pavilion Café in Royal Victoria Park.

The model is the project’s first female lion and is called Daisy Honey, after the first child who attended the nursery in Dover Place.

It has been decorated by local artist Sam Lindup, who has used coloured pens to cover the entire lion with more than 1,000 pictures related to children and childcare.

HPH Commercial Property has also designed a model to appeal to children with a brightly coloured African theme and will be named Uhuru after the peak of Kilimanjaro.

The lions will be on display in the city for six months. At the end of the project each sculpture will be sold at auction and the money raised will be donated to local charities Off the Record, Quartet Community Foundation, and the Mayor of Bath’s Relief Fund, as well as providing a legacy fund for future public art projects in Bath.

Meanwhile, as residents and tourists try to find the model lions dotted around the streets of Bath this summer one sculpture will be doing all the work for them.

Spot in Union Street has been designed and sponsored by digital agency Deep Blue Sky, will be covered in 100 individual codes which will direct visitors to each of the lions.

The QR codes, which store website addresses, can be read by many mobile phone cameras.

Spot’s codes will each have a link to Google Maps, revealing the location of the 100 different lions.

Managing director of Green Park-based Deep Blue Sky Jim Morrison said there were also likely to be some hidden codes which would be linked to other websites.

He said: “As a country we won’t survive unless we innovate. People have got to start doing things differently to stand out.

“That’s why we decided to do something a bit different and not just paint him in a pretty colour.”

“Most modern phones will support the application so many people will be able to get involved.”

For more information, go to www.lionsofbath.com