July 2018
What a wonderful splash of creativity and colour our little elephant parade herd brought to the streets of London during June and July. Sadly, as is the nature of elephants, they have now moved on, rumbling with gentle contentment as they settle into their new homes knowing that their visit has helped raise awareness and funds for the protection of their cousins in the wild.
The sculptures stood sentinel across the capital as ambassadors for Asia’s elephants – raising awareness for the plight of Asia’s endangered and often forgotten elephants – and as a thank you to London for the awesome support they received in 2010. Thousands visited the beautiful, original artworks and shared their stories and pictures across social media, revelling in the creativity and craftsmanship of the artists and designers who supported the campaign with its hashtag #fromindiawithlove.
“The collaboration and support of some of India’s leading artists and designers, along with those who hosted the sculptures, helped shine a spotlight on the plight of Asia’s elephants and raised over £200,000 for conservation through the online auctioning of the herd,” says Elephant Family trustee Ruth Ganesh.
The team at Elephant Family would like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who supported the elephants, took time to visit them and to learn more about the plight of their cousins in the wild. Thank you also to the brilliantly, sparklingly talented artists and designers (listed below) who made our elephants so beautiful and to those who so generously hosted their stay including Selfridges, The Beaumont Hotel, The Dorchester, R Chocolate London, Grosvenor Estates and Cadogan Estates. Thank you also to Paddle8 for hosting the auction which closed on 18 July having raised more than £200,000 which will go back to help protect Asian elephants in the wild.
The Artists
Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, Adil Ahmad for Kanika Kapoor, Adil Ahmad with Vasundghara Raje, Adil Ahmad, Anushka Khanna, Atelier of Pichvai Tradition & beyond, Gaurav Gupta, Gayatri Sekhri, George Martin, Good Eath, His Highness Maharaja Gaj Singh of Jodphur and Marwar, Jason Woodside, JJ Valaya,
Little Shilpa, Maire Anne Oudejans, Marissa Bridge, Michael Howells, Michelle Poonawalla, Payal Singhal, Prakhabar Pachpute, Rafaela de Ascanio, Ravi Vazirani, Rohit Bahl, Sonal Ambani, Suhasini Kejriwal, Tejal Gala, Varun Bahl, Veer Munshi and Vikram Goyal.
Key partners
Elephant Parade, Anantara Hotels, Amrapali Jewels, Kama Ayuverda, Cadogan Estates, Grosvenor Estates, Selfridges, The Dorchester, The Beaumont Hotel, R Chocolate London, Paddle8.