Eli Whitney Museum

Elephants have served civilizations for thousands of years. They have worked, they have fought, they have inspired, they have entertained. Like humans elephants feel a complex range of emotions, including love. The strongest instances of which are shown between a mother elephant and her baby. The calf is so small compared to the adult that it walks beneath its mother, who incredibly never steps on or trips over it. Now they are endangered and many elephants are left orphans. Poachers hunt them for their ivory tusks. Growing populations are encroaching on the elephants’ habitats. It’s likely that elephants will thrive in the future only in protected sanctuaries.

Sanctuaries in this country protect elephants freed from zoos and circuses. In Kenya, The David Scheldrick Wildlife Trust rescues and rears orphan elephants.

In Elephant Parades around the world, artists celebrate and raise funds to help defend elephants. Join the cause. Make a pair of African or Asian elephants, a mother and child who can walk together.

Former apprentice Sylvie Rosenthal is a sculptor whose work often celebrates animals. This workshop will match her contribution to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.