Wise Elephant

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Animal

African Elephant

Location
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Wise Elephant (African Elephant) — public sculpture on the Waco Sculpture Zoo trail
Older man and woman standing outdoors with autumn foliage in the background; the woman wears a red jacket with floral embroidery and smiles.

Donors

Elizabeth and Brian Mitchell

This “wise elephant” is a large cast bronze piece that sits on a park bench allowing visitors to sit down for a moment and wonder just what he is thinking. The elephant is anthropomorphized, meaning that O’Tool gave him human characteristics. It is actually a humorous interpretation of Rodin’s famous sculpture, “The Thinker”. The artwork presents a unique opportunity to see just how massive elephants are, by sitting right beside one!

Did You Know?

  • The African Elephant is the largest animal walking the Earth.
  • They use their trunk for communication, smelling, breathing, trumpeting, drinking, and handling objects.
  • Their large ears allow them to radiate excess heat.
  • Their tusks are actually upper incisor teeth and grow throughout their lifetime.
  • Baby elephants actually lose their teeth/tusks just like humans!
  • African Elephants are highly intelligent and have a very long memory.

About the artist

Tucson, Arizona artist, Trevor O’Tool, is motivated by a love of traditional media and fabrication techniques, including wood carving and the lost wax casting technique in bronze. Wise Elephant is his first monumental bronze sculpture. He loves using analogy and humor in his artwork, as a way to engage and encourage interaction.

Whitetail
Gerenuk

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