Welcome to this follow up to my feature on The Pasture.  This post focuses on another public art piece in the Financial District: Tembo – Mother of Elephants.

 

Tembo (the Swahili word for elephant) is located in the Commerce Court Courtyard on the south side of King Street and depicts 3 elephants (a female and 2 calves) walking towards the large fountain in the middle of the courtyard.

 

The piece is by Derrick Stephan Hudson, who was born in the UK, grew up in Canada and earned a degree from the Ontario College of Art and Design.  Hudson endeavours to raise awareness about animal conservation through his work, which focuses on wildlife forms in bronze, silver and stone.

 

In Tembo, Hudson created one of the largest bronze elephants in the world, with the female standing over nine feet and weighing more than 80 people.  The calves are much smaller at just over 2 feet tall.

 

This is one of my favourite installations in Toronto because the female seems to be providing care and protection while leading the calves to a source of nourishment. Elephants are known to be quite family-oriented animals, often acting as family groups with multiple females sharing maternal duties while also protecting calves from predators.

 

Another interesting aspect of this installation is the two calves.  Elephants have exceptionally long pregnancies which last twenty-two months and result in the birth of a single calf, which is subsequently nursed for about 4 years.  Giving birth to two calves is extremely rare.

 

What I personally find most interesting about the piece however, is how it plays the immensity of nature against man’s desire to conquer it.  Up close, the elephants and the water are impressive, but taken against the size of the surrounding buildings, that grandeur is diminished, emphasizing the fragility of wildlife in our world today.

 

My next post in this series will focus on another public art display in the Financial District – so please come back and take a look!

 

Until then, I’d appreciate hearing what you liked about about this post! As well, I’d love to see any great shots you have of Tembo!

 

Don’t forget to click like and recommend Jonathon C Photography to your friends or someone you know who may find it interesting.

 

Art Banks Blog Blogger Bronze Buildings Calves Canada Care Commerce Court Conservation Courtyard Derrick Stephan Hudson Design Downtown Elephants Family Financial District Fountain Fragility Installation Jon Chodarcewicz Jonathon C Photography Jonathon Chodarcewicz King Street Maternal Nature Photography Protection Public Art Sculpture Sculptures Silver Skyscrapers Stone Swahili Tembo Toronto Wildlife