Hope The Rhino
When it comes to unique garden art and animal sculptures in Melbourne, my corten steel pieces are sure to get people’s attention.
Hope The Rhino is that piece. In fact, this sculpture was my first political piece.
I created and installed Hope in the Czech Republic as part of the country’s Metalove Sympozium. This annual event showcases the work of blacksmiths and metal artists from around the world. Participating in this event was a huge honour, especially for an emerging metal artist.
Hope is a statement piece, about the dire situation facing the world’s rhinoceros population.
In the smallest of actions, there is hope. Hope that we can create change in this world.
This sculpture is dedicated to Vince, the rhino brutally killed by poachers at a Paris zoo in 2017. Following Vince’s death, one Czech Republic zoo dehorned its entire herd of rhinos to prevent poaching.
The situation is so catastrophic that rhinos will become extinct within the next 10 years if poaching doesn’t cease. But there is hope.
The Australian Rhino Project is helping to ensure a safe future for rhinos. Their ambitious goal is to establish a breeding population of the species in Australia, far from the clutches of poachers. As a result of my passion for rhino conservation, I went on to build a second Hope sculpture, donating it to the Australian Rhino Project and raising $42,500 for the cause. In 2019, I donated a giraffe sculpture, raising $15,000 for the project.
