World-renowned artist Andries Botha's family of pachyderms are gracing the Village Green as an appeal for more environmentally attentive art.
World-renowned artist Andries Botha's family of pachyderms are gracing the Village Green as an appeal for more environmentally attentive art.
has woven strips of old truck tyres to make three life-sized elephant statues, which form part of the National Art’s Festival’s public art programme.
Botha’s largest elephant is called Nomkhubulwane, named after a mythical guardian of the Earth. The statue has been toured worldwide to advocate ecological innovation.
Botha’s aim is to encourage artists to engage more with the sustainability debate and to work for imaginative solutions to the climate crisis.
He is using the elephant to develop a visual metaphor for this participation. “Now that we know we are depleting our resources, I think it should be of great concern to creative people.
The only solution to the problem will be a creative and innovative one and artists can provide that kind of solution” says Botha.
Since becoming aware of the issue, Botha has asked himself how he might take initiative and still practice as an artist.
He did so by founding The Human Elephant Foundation, which works to expand environmental awareness and runs various social programmes from education projects to job creation and training.
CEO John Charter says that the Foundation acts as a catalyst for change. "Because art is a fantastic medium to communicate and harness people’s imaginations."
"We have to be creative because the solution to these problems is not going to come in any formulised manner.”
Festivalgoers can make a personal pledge to the Foundation and read about their work at their exhibition in the tent next to the sculptures.
