Art Made By Animals
Animals at St Louis Zoo
The animals at St Louis Zoo, Missouri, are fast gaining a reputation for being multitalented artists. The keepers at the zoo have introduced activities into the day-to-day lives of the animals in order to keep them mentally stimulated, and as a result, happy. One of these activities is painting, the animals are presented with non toxic paint and a canvas, then allowed to take their own personal approach to creating a piece of art! Some stand out stars from the zoo are the penguins, who walk through the paint and over a canvas, resulting in colourful, almost tree-like works! The artworks are for sale and the proceeds go towards the St. Louis Chapter of American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK), which helps to save endangered and threatened species from extinction.
Binny The Bunny
The next talented animal who has gained a prolific reputation in the art world is Bini the bunny. Bini is a six year old Holland Lop Rabbit who has the remarkable ability to paint, and has created over 300 works! Bini is able to actually hold a paintbrush in his mouth and direct it at the canvas, resulting in bright Pollock-like paintings. Bini’s artworks are available to buy and have been shipped across the world to his fans, known as ‘Hoppers.’
Congo the Chimpanzee
Next we move onto Congo the chimpanzee, arguably the most famous of the animal artists, even Picasso was a fan. Congo hit the news back in the 1950s, when he was a star of the television program Zootime, broadcasted from London Zoo. It is said that Congo accidentally fell into the arts after picking up a pencil one day and starting to draw. This behaviour was encouraged and developed until he began to paint, he would even pick the colours he wanted to work with, apparently favouring red! Congo had an extensive artistic output, creating around 400 drawings and paintings in three years. These works are said to have proved that chimpanzees are capable of creating abstract patterns under visual control, and interestingly, Congo would even decide when a painting was finished, refusing to carry on working on something he considered ‘finished’ and throwing a tantrum when a work was taken from him before his was done. Congo has been exhibited at major galleries, including the ICA and Mayor Gallery.
Jumpy the dog
Jumpy was arguably the most talented dog in Hollywood, not only was he a major film star with roles in films including In a Valley of Violence and Rules Don’t Apply, but he was also an extremely skilled painter! Jumpy created his masterpieces by holding a brush in his mouth and moving his head to mimic his owners commands. This level of understanding and intelligence means that the paintings created by Jumpy are the most figurative, depicting the likes of landscapes and even at times his own name.
Metro The Horse
Metro the horse is our largest animal artist, whose artistic abilities speak for themselves. After sustaining knee injuries, Metro’s career as a race horse came to an abrupt end, but luckily Metro was adopted and given a great life by artist Ron and wife Wendy Krajewski. His new owners noticed Metro would nod his head for attention, and found this trait could be used in order to create paintings. Metro’s owners were able to train him to hold a brush by placing it in the same position as a bit would previously have been in his mouth, then the horse moves his head in a way which creates powerful and expressive brush strokes. Half of the money raised from the paintings went towards funding the treatment Metro needed for his knees, which at one point were considered terminal. The other half of the proceeds from the artwork went to the New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program, helping other horses in need.
