[ExI] elephant painting

[BillK]

On 5/6/10, spike wrote:
> Did you know an elephant could do this?  I had never heard of it.
>
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He7Ge7Sogrk
>
>


There you go spike.   Believing what you see with your own eyes again.  :)

This is an internet viral video. These elephants have even been on television.

Obviously if the elephant was a real artist he would be wearing a
beret and living in Paris.

Elephants are indeed very intelligent animals and have been trained to
hold a paintbrush and wipe it on paper.  Their splashes can be called
abstract art by today's standards of art.

Two elephants have been painstakingly trained to copy a particular
drawing. One draws an elephant (called a self portrait) and one draws
flowers.

They have been trained to do this because the paintings can be sold to
raise money for elephant conservation. A worthy cause.

See:
<http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/elephantpainting.asp>
and for details of the project:
<http://www.elephantart.com/catalog/history.php>
(including samples of their art).


BillK