Tourism & Culture · Accessible trail · London
Paws on the Wharf.
25 guide dogs,
42 languages.
From 25 March to 17 May 2024, Canary Wharf became “Canary Woof”: 25 life-size guide-dog sculptures by 25 artists, spread between the Wharf and the Thames. Run by Guide Dogs UK and Wild in Art with Canary Wharf Group, sponsored by Citi, it was Wild in Art’s first accessible-by-default trail: every plinth carries a large NaviLens code that voices — in English and 41 other languages — the artwork name, artist, sponsor and directions to the next stop.
§ The trail in images
From Canada Place to West India Quay.
Each of the 25 plinths combined the large NaviLens code (yellow face) with a conventional QR, artist bio, area and artwork number, sponsor (Citi, Canal & River Trust, United Airlines…) and a link to the final charity auction.
25
Life-size guide-dog sculptures, decorated by 25 different artists
8 wks
From 25 March to 17 May 2024 — free and outdoors
16 + 9
16 sculptures in Canary Wharf · 9 along the Thames
42
Languages voiced by NaviLens at every plinth
Client
Guide Dogs UK · Wild in Art · Canary Wharf Group · Citi
Guide Dogs UK is Britain’s largest sight-loss charity. For Paws on the Wharf it partnered with Wild in Art — producer of the UK’s best-known sculpture trails — to build its first accessible-by-default trail.
Canary Wharf Group hosted the trail and Citi acted as principal Sculpture Sponsor, with Canal & River Trust as Land Partner and United Airlines as additional sponsor. NaviLens provided the accessibility layer on every plinth.
§ The challenge
A public-art trail for people who can’t see it.
- 01
An art trail for blind and partially sighted visitors
Paws on the Wharf was born to raise awareness of sight loss and funds for Guide Dogs UK. The paradox: a 25-sculpture trail is, by default, a visual experience. How can blind visitors walk it with the same richness?
- 02
Each plinth, an artwork label
Each sculpture has an artist, sponsor, area/number, description and auction link. All of it had to be readable not just in ink but also in audio and in any language for the millions of tourists at Canary Wharf.
- 03
Distance, rain and City rush
Canary Wharf is an office hub: fast-walking commuters, rain, umbrellas, school groups, tourists. The system had to be readable from several metres, without focusing, on the move — something a standard QR cannot deliver for a blind person.
§ The solution
A plinth
that speaks up.
Every plinth carried the large NaviLens code on its yellow face, scannable from metres away, without focusing and on the move. Visitors open the app and hear in their language the artwork name, the area and number, the artist bio, the sponsor and the directions to the next sculpture.
Together with multi-sensory tours — touching the sculptures and smelling items linked to each piece — and the replacement of conventional QRs with NaviLens, Paws on the Wharf became the first Wild in Art trail walkable independently by blind and partially sighted visitors.
§ Timeline
Eight weeks of Canary Wharf as Canary Woof.
26 Mar 2024
Official announcement
Canary Wharf Group, Guide Dogs UK and Wild in Art announce Paws on the Wharf — Wild in Art’s first fully accessible trail.
25 Mar 2024
Trail opens
All 25 sculptures unfold: 16 in Canary Wharf and 9 along the Thames. Every plinth shows the large NaviLens code.
26 Mar 2024
BBC coverage
BBC News features the trail highlighting its accessibility. Tower Hamlets Slice, NE Londoner and others follow.
Apr 2024
School and multi-sensory tours
Guide Dogs runs school visits and multi-sensory tours: touch the sculptures and smell linked items while the plinth voices the description.
17 May 2024
Close and auction
The trail closes. Sculptures move to a charity auction whose full proceeds go to Guide Dogs UK.
§ What they said
What Canary Wharf Group, the BBC and the local press said.
“Guide Dogs and Wild in Art are thrilled to announce a spectacular accessible art trail, aptly titled Paws on the Wharf, taking place in Canary Wharf from 25 March to 17 May 2024. The trail features 25 larger-than-life guide dog sculptures, each fitted with a NaviLens code on the plinth so people with sight loss can scan and hear the artist statement, sponsor information and trail directions in 42 languages.”
“Decorated dog sculptures have turned Canary Wharf into Canary Woof with the opening of a canine public art trail. Paws on the Wharf, organised by Guide Dogs and Wild in Art, showcases the work of 25 artists and aims to raise awareness about sight loss.”
§ Results
Public art, too, universally accessible.
100% accessible trail
All 25 plinths with NaviLens — Wild in Art’s first accessible-by-default trail
EN + 42 languages
Every plinth voices artist, sponsor, area/number and link in any app language
Replicable model
Pattern later adopted by other Wild in Art trails
§ And your destination?
Your destination can also guide in 42 languages.
Tell us about your routes, offices, monuments or galleries. We’ll show you how NaviLens would make your offer accessible —with comparable cases.
