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Years ago, Simon Combes wrote in his diary: “‘Africa’s
Elephants in Danger of Extinction!’ I was stunned by the
cataclysmic headlines in 1989. With the elephants’ plight
uppermost in my mind, I decided to paint as large a canvas as
my small studio would accommodate. Visually, the painting would
ask the question,‘Where are the elephants going?’ There
must be uncertainty and bleakness to symbolize the imminent tragedy.
“The line of elephants winds its way over the ridge, perhaps
traveling from a lush valley into a dry, inhospitable environment
epitomized by a tree’s skeleton and sparse tufts of sun-
bleached grass struggling for survival in the infertile ground.
Perhaps only in such a stark wilderness can the last of the elephants
survive the predations of man. ”Twenty years later, elephants
are still at risk for extinction, but there have been some steps
in the right direction: shortly after Simon Combes read those
alarming headlines, the United States government imposed a ban
on commercial import of elephant ivory and many other countries
followed suit.Unfortunately, the elephants are not safe as yet
and it is up to us to protect them and their habitat. |