Chimps Are Family

Exhibit Title:
Chimps Are Family

Exhibition Locations:
Current Exhibition (July 2024 – July 2025):
Richmond Sculpture Trail, London, UK

Past Exhibitions:
- Eagle Brewery Wharf, Riverside Walk, Kingston Upon Thames, UK (January 2023 – July 2024)
- London Bridge City, London SE1, UK (January 2022 – January 2023)

Exhibition Dates:
- Richmond Sculpture Trail: July 2024 – July 2025
- Eagle Brewery Wharf, Kingston: January 2023 – July 2024
- London Bridge City: January 2022 – January 2023

About the Exhibition:
Chimps Are Family is an interactive and impactful public art exhibition that highlights the profound connections between humans and our closest relatives, the great apes. Featuring 10 bronze chimpanzee sculptures, each depicting behaviors such as laughter, grief, and nest-making, the exhibition creates a moving portrait of these incredible animals and their similarities to us.

Following successful exhibitions at London Bridge City and Kingston Upon Thames, the sculptures have now made their way to Richmond Sculpture Trail for 2024-2025. Each installation has drawn thousands of visitors, encouraging people to stop, engage, and learn about chimpanzee conservation.

Designed to be interactive, the sculptures invite the public to touch, hug, and examine them up close, fostering a deeper emotional connection. Each sculpture includes a QR code that links to information about the real-life animals and the challenges they face, offering visitors a chance to donate directly to conservation efforts through WWF-UK.

Gillie and Marc’s ultimate goal is to inspire love and understanding while sparking meaningful action to protect these endangered creatures. By showcasing the beauty, intelligence, and personality of chimpanzees, Chimps Are Family reinforces the message that we share a common evolutionary history and must come together as one family to ensure their survival.

About the Project:
The Chimps Are Family project was born from Gillie and Marc’s life-changing encounters with great apes in the wild. Meeting the babies of chimps, orangutans, and gorillas, the artists were struck by their similarities to human infants—cheeky, playful, and deeply attached to their mothers. These experiences highlighted the shared evolutionary bond between humans and great apes, inspiring the creation of this public art project.

Great apes—chimpanzees, orangutans, gorillas, and bonobos—share 98% of our DNA and display many of the same traits as humans, including laughter, grief, and tool use. Seeing this firsthand moved the artists to tears and drove them to create sculptures that would spark awareness, empathy, and action to protect these incredible animals from extinction.

Each sculpture reflects a behavior or emotion commonly seen in chimpanzees, such as play, foraging, and conflict. By showcasing these behaviors, the exhibition invites people to see chimps not just as animals but as family members—our distant cousins who need our help.

Aligned with hashtags #LoveTheLast and #ChimpsAreFamily, the project amplifies the message of conservation globally, encouraging visitors to donate directly to WWF-UK to support great ape protection.

About the Sculptures:
The Chimps Are Family exhibition features 10 life-sized bronze sculptures, each depicting a unique chimpanzee behavior.

These sculptures have delighted visitors at London Bridge City and Kingston Upon Thames, and now Richmond is the latest location to host this heartwarming installation.

Each sculpture is designed to be interactive, encouraging visitors to touch, play, and take photos, fostering a sense of connection with the chimps. QR codes attached to each sculpture provide educational content and opportunities to donate directly to WWF-UK, ensuring that every interaction contributes to saving these animals in the wild.

Gillie and Marc’s hope is that by experiencing the sculptures up close, visitors will be inspired to protect the great apes—creatures who laugh, love, and grieve just like we do.

How to Help:

  • Donate directly to WWF-UK to support chimpanzee conservation: Donate Here
  • Purchase chimpanzee-related art, with 30% of proceeds going directly to WWF: Browse Art Here
  • Share the message on social media using the hashtags #LoveTheLast and #ChimpsAreFamily.

Partners:
WWF:
WWF-UK works tirelessly to protect primates and their habitats. With offices in Woking, Edinburgh, and Cardiff, WWF ensures positive impact at both local and global levels. Visit their Living Planet Centre in Woking to learn more.

London Bridge City:
A cultural hub in the heart of London, London Bridge City offers stunning views of the Thames and iconic landmarks, blending history with modern vibrancy.

Kingston Upon Thames:
Steeped in history and located along the River Thames, Kingston combines cultural heritage with vibrant public spaces, making it a perfect setting for conservation-focused art.

Kingston First:
An organization committed to ensuring Kingston remains a thriving destination for businesses, residents, and visitors.

Special Thanks to Donors:

  • Catherine Bastock
  • Anna Frame
  • Barnes Family
  • Nigel Mann
  • Dianne Townsend
  • Mario & Tina Cardinale
  • The McGhee-Dann Family
  • Linda Summerfield
  • VELUX Global Group Functions
  • Jess Capps
  • Sweetnam and Bradley Ltd
  • Federated Hermes
  • Grayling
  • Patrick and Lois Bellew



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