In-Dangered Animals Cellograff
Close your eyes and imagine a world where there are no longer any species wondering the land . A world where human are alone. This is a place where human development has ruined the habitats for our fellow species to live.
Now open your eyes.
Realize our world is already on a fast track to destroying not only the beautiful creatures’ habitats but our habitat as well. We are killing our home through rising deforestation, pollution, and infrastructure.There are now over 41,415 species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List (species endangered or threatened of becoming extinct) and around 16,000 of them are endangered species.
To inform people of the this ever growing problem I painted some of my favorite endangered animals away from their natural environments to remind others of their importance.
To illustrate my idea I created large scale murals in the woods of Colorado Springs.
With multiple rolls of saran wrap I was able to build my own wall in between trees in a place we know and love as Strawberry fields. With a blank walls calling my name, I painted two species from the Red Eye Tree Frog and the critically endangered Giant Panda.
With the vibrant colors the Red Eye Tree Frog has I knew would stand out and gathers people attention. Looking for more inspiration, I found that the Tree Frog is the symbol of rain forest preservation. Being common prey, they sleep throughout the day camouflaged against leafs with their legs hidden underneath their body. If a predator comes near they open their bright red eye to startle the predator, which buys them time to escape
The Red Eye Tree Frog is one of iconic frogs people recall especially when one brings up rain forest frogs. I thought the familiarity might grab people’s attention and remind them of the immense danger these majestic creatures face daily, from our own doing! The Red Eye Tree Frogs are not on the endangered list, but their habitat is being destroyed by deforestation. In other words, the frog is not endangered itself their habitats are critically threatened to the point of being endangered. Either way these little guys are facing many dangers created by people and I wish to spread the word to stop deforestation and assist with these beauties’ lives to be improved.
To continue with spreading the animals around Colorado Springs I hiked an hour up a trail in North Bear Creek Canyon. With limited time my goal was to paint one of my favorites the Giant Panda. According to World Wildlife Fund the Giant Panda is critically endangered, and there only 1,864 left in the entire world. Leaving my scared Giant Panda is not something a hiker is going to expect after hiking an hour up. After interrupting someone’s day hopefully some will reflect on their actions and the consequences around the globe.
At my friends house where a bunch of us gather regularly, I did my first practice run. During the summer we would practice painting on the saran wrap. I knew the saran would hold perfectly, I just never painted realistically. The Toucan was the first animal I tried to paint representationally.
Came out pretty well!!
The population of the Toucans is unknown, however its believed there are less than 20,000. Toucans around the world are poached and every part of the their body is sold for a price.
Through out the project process I ran into some issues due to the weather. I was limited with time and had trouble hiking with ice on the ground. The worst was when spray cans would freeze or exploded while trying to paint.
Art is not only a beautiful expression, but also a way to communicate important issues. It is important we do not limit the spaces where we can express ourselves. That’s like saying you can only sing in a studio. We need to open our minds to explore what innovative and important ideas we can share with household products available. at the same time why not share these ideas being spread mindfully in a sacred spot on the mountain.
The question is, where would we be without art helping us to see reality up close or to look beyond into fantasy?
SAVE THE ANIMALS!!!!!!!!
