Tattoo Elephant

	TATTOO - BORN TO BE WILD, 2009 FIBRE-GLASS ELEPHANT ADORNED WITH A COLLAGE OF GARY'S PRINTS On show in Green Park with others, forming the London Elephant Parade in the early summer of 2010, Tattoo was sold by auction in aid if the Born Free Foundation for £12,500. Tattoo is one of 258 fibre-glass sculptures, each worked on by a different artist. Gary created an exciting unique collage on his elephant using parts of the overrun each paper limited edition requires. Because his limited editions are personally inspected by Gary to ensure there are no flaws in the paper or printing - the overrun makes sure there are enough perfect prints for the edition. This project provided a creative and productive way to recycle parts of these overruns. Gary says "I was introduced to this amazing public art and conservation project by my friend Rula Lenska. She was asked by the Elephant Family charity to suggest artists who may potentially be able to undertake such a venture. As Rula loves my drawings, I was at the top of her list alongside Andrew Logan. "When she first explained the project to me, the first thing that came to my mind was to create a collage of my prints. As the Elephant Parade is London based, I thought it would be fun to inject a splash of colour to the mix by painting an aerial view of the River Thames. This sight has been made even more famous because of the hugely popular British soap opera, Eastenders, which both Rula and another collector of mine, Pam St Clement, have starred in. "With these ideas in my mind I said yes! "When the five feet tall elephant arrived at my home in Brixton, London the project became a reality. Over the next three weeks I had an exciting voyage of discovery. I had never done a collage before, or used PVA glue, or torn paper (it has a mind of its own) or painted with acrylics! "I began by painting three coats of white matt emulsion, each one taking an hour and a half. Then I sketched out the River Thames making sure it wound around the elephant in all the right areas. I then carefully added two coats of turquoise acrylic paint. I was then ready to start on the daunting collage! TATTOO MARCHING TO BUCKINGHAM PALACE "As with my drawings, a huge part of creating the collage was using my visual judgement to decide where to place each bit of the prints. I found this so exciting to do. As the elephant was in my living room, I would stick bits on whenever I felt like it. 7am or 11pm, it didn't matter. For quite a number of days it became my main focus in life, so I really did live with my elephant. "What changed from my initial ideas was when it came to creating the other side of my elephant. I decided to add the element of surprise. Expecting more of the same on the other side, people are instead confronted with a theatrical group of meerkats at play. I hope you enjoy this diversity. "On both sides of Tattoo I drew lots of pencil marks to enhance the patterns. This is particularly obvious under the blue line on the side with the meerkats. "The elephant was collected after I'd given two coats of exterior varnish for protection. "I've so enjoyed using a different side to my creativity on Tattoo." PREVIOUS NEXT

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