Dimensions
Sculpture
48.4 x 73.6 x 50.4 inch (H*L*W) 886.4 lbs
123 x 187 x 128 cm (H*L*W) 402 kgs
Base
11.8 x 74.8 x 59.1 inch (H*L*W)
30 x 190 x 150 cm (H*L*W)
Medium
Bronze
Style
Contemporary Sculpture, Wildlife, Activist Art
Edition Number
/6
Description
This 2-year-old baby boy loves playing. He’s finally confident enough to spend a bit of time away from mum playing with his siblings and learning to climb. But he is worried. He has noticed that a lot of gorillas in his community have been getting sick and dying. And some are just disappearing! It seems to happen whenever a human comes close. He has been told to stay away from the humans, they might to catch him and keep him in a cage.
The smallest of all the gorilla, the Western Lowland Gorilla are the most widespread, found in the thick tropical rainforests of western and central Africa. These vegetarians spend a lot of their time eating their favourite foods; roots, shoots, fruit, wild celery, and tree bark and pulp. They are incredibly peaceful animals, living calm and nonviolent lives, except when they are provoked. When this happens, the dominant male can demonstrate his strength with a mighty display, standing on two-foot, charging, pounding his chest, hooting, and giving an almighty roar.
Just like us, female gorillas usually give birth to just one baby at a time. These little ones are tiny and helpless, only weighing about four pounds, and are completely dependent on their mother. They cling to her fur for safety until about four months old when they learn to ride on her back. They will stay safely on mums back for the first 2-3 years of their lives, watching and learning and getting a lot of love from mum. As they get older, they will start to play, climbing trees, wrestling, chasing each other, and learning everything they need to know to be a good chimp. They are dependent on their mothers for up to 5 years.
Gorillas are some of the most intelligent animals in the world and can even learn sign language! Koko the gorilla shocked the world in the 1970s with her ability to learn and communicate in sign language. She mastered 1000 signs and was able to make statements of up to 8 words to let people know what she wanted or thought. Koko was also elevated to stardom when she adopted a kitten as a pet, a pet she had asked for, showing such care and love as if it were her own child. When her kitten died, she signed "Bad, sad, bad" and "Frown, cry, frown, sad, trouble" and was even heard making a sound similar to a human crying. Koko passed away in 2018.
The main threats for this gorilla are poaching and disease and it is estimated that their numbers have declined by over 65% in the past 20-25 years. Hunting the adults for bushmeat and the babies for pets is a big problem. In Northeast Congo alone, approximately 5% are killed each year because of this. Being so closely related to us in terms of DNA is also a big problem when it comes to disease. Central Africa has been struggling with the deadly Ebola virus for a long time and it’s not just humans affected. Gorillas and chimpanzee have been badly affected with estimates stating that one-third of wild gorilla populations, mostly made up of the western lowland gorilla, have been killed. One community, once considered one of the most important populations, the Minkébé Forest, have lost 90% of their population to Ebola.
Artwork Features
Gillie and Marc love working in bronze for many reasons. Bronze is a very hardy material and will last forever. As experts in coloring bronze, Gillie and Marc enjoy experimenting with their sculptures, adding a splash of color to brighten the work, making it even more unique. > Read more
For every purchase of a bronze sculpture you will receive a certificate of authenticity, titled, signed, dated and editioned by the artists.
Care Instructions
Bronze is very easy to clean, allowing you to enjoy your precious sculpture with minimal upkeep. > Read more
Shipping, Returns and Refunds
Please visit this page to learn all about our policies. > Read more
Give Back to WWF-AUSTRALIA
With every edition purchased, Gillie and Marc will proudly donate 30% of proceeds to support WWF-Australia.
WWF is one of the world’s largest and most respected independent conservation organisations. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the earth’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature.
For more information, visit https://wwf.org.au/donate/wild-about-babies/
