Congratulations! You have found a Ken Behrens Bear! Or, you have stumbled across this blog post from some other source! Either way, your here to find out more about the “Ken Behrens Bear Share”!
So Who Is Ken Behrens Anyways?
Ken Behrens is the unofficial mascot of the August 2021 Canberra Covid-19 Lock down. Born from the misinterpreted, auto generated subtitles of a press conference, Ken Behrens is the face of all Canberrans. “Thank you Ken Behrens” read the subtitles as Andrew Barr thanked Canberrans for doing the right thing during the lock down. Ken Behrens was exactly what we all needed to keep the mood light as we faced the unknown implications of Covid-19 rapidly moving through our community.
Ken Behrens is actually a living, breathing human being too. He is a famous African photographer! Check him out if your interested! How confusing it must have been for him to get a lot of interest from the small region of Canberra, Australia, over night!
The Ken Behrens Bear Share
The concept behind the “Ken Behrens Bear Share” is to create community spirit and come together in a socially distanced art collaboration project, sharing cheer in a time when we all need it!
Extending on an idea that was developed last lock down (I’m not sure where it originated, drop me a link if you know!) where people displayed teddy bears in their windows for children to spot as they exercised in the streets surrounding their homes, I drew a simple bear motif and added the phrases “Thank You Ken Behrens” and “Stay Safe Ken Behrens”.
I have been madly screen printing the motif onto cotton fabric and hastily sewing and stuffing them! With the idea to drop them along walking paths close to our home, for people to find and decorate, then either display in their window, or pass onto someone who might need a little cheering up.
You Found A Bear!
If you’re here because you found a bear, Yay! I’m so excited!
Each bear has a tag that reads ” Congratulations! You have found a Ken Behrens Bear! Use textas, paint or your favorite art medium to decorate your bear. Once finished, display your bear in a window, or pass it onto another Ken Behren in need of a little cheer in their day! Don’t forget to share your bear using the hashtag #KenBehrensBearShare “
This is an obligation free exercise. You don’t have to, but we would love for you to share that you’ve found a bear, if you decorate a bear, we would even love to hear stories of your bears adventures! Use the hashtag #KenBehrensBearShare , leave a comment here, drop us a line on Facebook or find me on Instagram . I hope to be able to update this post with photos from the community!
What can I decorate the bear with?
Experiment! Have fun!
Unless you think you will put your bear through vigorous and messy activity that requires materials for longevity and lots of washing, don’t worry about what you use! Worry about the how!
Oh no! I missed out!
Unfortunately, due to lockdown, we are unable to drop these bears far from home. So I apologize to most of Canberra who will miss out on even trying to locate one. I’m also limited in my capacity to make them, so far I have 18 ready to drop, with the potential to make more, depending on how well received they are and how long we stay in lockdown!
Have no fear though, you haven’t missed out completely! I’ve made the bears into a downloadable colouring page too! And we want to see what you do with these too! Click here for pdf.
How will this unfold?
I am eager to see! Will it be well taken? Or will I find bears still in their hiding places months later? Will people get into the spirit of decorating them? Time will tell. I will, however, try and keep update this page as it something happens!
Most of all, just have fun with it! I know I have already!
<3 Cate
UPDATE ONE
Tuesday was the day! The weather forecast had it set to be a glorious day, and it did not disappoint!
We got up early and ventured out, meandering along some of our favorite walking paths close to home. We dropped 18 bears! By early afternoon, I’d already had one response! Bears have been found, and one has even been decorated!
UPDATE TWO
My son and I found one on our walk through Moncrieff today! He has coloured it i and it’s now hanging on our front door. Such a cute idea!
Thank you!
It makes me so happy that they are bringing joy to other people <3