It's a stampede with a message.
”Great migration of elephants” is one of the largest outdoor art installations ever installed on a New York City street, with 100 life-sized elephant sculptures installed in Manhattan's Meatpacking District.
“It's amazing! This really reminds me of my vacation in Africa,” said a local who stopped to pet the gentle giants installed on Ninth Avenue between West 15th Street and Horatio Street on Sunday. said Lisa Kievit, 75, who joined the crowd of residents and tourists.
The elephant, made from layers of fine woody reeds, was created by the Coexistence Collective, a community of 200 indigenous artisans living in India's Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, to raise funds and awareness for wildlife conservation. I did.
Each sculpture is a life-size replica of a specific real-life elephant that roams the South Indian bush.
“We just arrived in Thailand and were very surprised to see how lively the elephants were,” said Meemi Hsieh, a wellness coach who lives nearby.
In fact, they were so real that one girl was afraid to approach them.
“I'm glad I'm here in New York,” said the girl's father, Ivan Luppi. “This shows that we need to be in harmony with animals in order to coexist with them.”
The artists sculpted the beast from lantana, an invasive weed that has engulfed more than 100,000 square miles of India's forests and threatened the food supply of local animals.
“This global fundraiser supports indigenous and community-led conservation efforts, especially the extraordinary people around the world who are finding ways to coexist with lions, leopards, elephants, and some of the most difficult animals on Earth. ” says the magazine. Meatpacking District website.
Ranita Hobbs, 67, hoped the elephant would make New York its forever home. “They're great. They should stay here,” she said.
Those hoping to catch a glimpse of this majestic creature have until October 20 to pack their trunks and head to Miami Beach and then Los Angeles.
