AN ARTIST from Cirencester who was handpicked out of thousands of other hopefuls to decorate a huge Shaun the Sheep model has already wowed the nation with her fresh and fruity design.

Laura Fearn was chosen out of 2,000 other artists at the start of this year to paint a special model of the Aardman Animations sheep, which shot to fame after starring in an episode of Wallace and Gromit.

Her fruit-themed Shaun, named Tutti Frutti, has been placed in a special Bristol location along with 70 other models dotted around the city.

Mum of two Laura, 41, who lives in Stratton said it was so exciting seeing her design in Bristol, after she was forced to keep it a secret for so long. In 2014 she also designed a five foot hare model for Cirencester's own sculpture trail, the March Hare Festival.

"I'm very excited about my Shaun, I can't wait to see people's reactions," said Laura. "I hope Wallace would like him, bearing in mind his prize vegetables!"

Laura's Shaun model, which took two weeks to create, was only made public today but many excited trail enthusiasts have already been sharing pictures of it on social media. It has been sponsored by Kitchens Cookshop and is living outside the Whiteladies Road branch in Bristol.

She added that she originally came up with three designs but the trail organisers chose her fruity one.

"His head screamed 'melon' and his eyes just had to be tomatoes," she said. "The other fruit and veg fitted in around his lumps and bumps. His ears made a great bunch of bananas and and an aubergine, whilst his legs enabled me to use some long veggies like beans and celery.

"I love to use bright, bold colours so the design was perfect for me to make him jolly and eye-catching."

Visitors will be able to spot each sheep in the sculpture trail, called Shaun in the City, before they go under the hammer later this year to raise funds for children's charities. The idea for the trail came about after the award-winning Gromit Unleashed event raised £5million for Bristol Children's Hospital last year.

The Shaun in the City trail will last until the end of August this year.

Visit shauninthecity.org.uk for more.