Big Tusker in Africa by Anja Semling

About "Big Tusker in Africa"

by Anja Semling

About the artwork

This painting is part of my long series entitled ELEPHANTS. I am probably the only artist in the world who has depicted the elephant in many different techniques and styles.
? I used a palette knife to fill in the picture, which creates great structures that go well with the elephant. Fine lines are drawn over it, wild and disorganised, for the sake of dynamism. This depiction of an elephant is exciting because there are 2 levels that visually connect with each other.

? The elephant symbolises dignity, wisdom and intelligence. A power animal and very social. The artwork shows a "Big Tusker". This is the name of the most powerful elephants in Africa. The picture is very impressive due to the power and size that the bull elephant radiates. He walks through the African savannah always in search of food or to reproduce.

A Big Tusker is a particularly large and powerful elephant, a stately appearance with huge tusks. There are only about 40 left in Africa. One of the last Big Tuskers was Satao, one of Kenya's largest elephants! He died in May 2014 from poisoned arrows inflicted by poachers in order to get their hands on his ivory. Satao was about 45 years old.

At least 20,000 elephants are brutally killed in Africa every year. 60% of the loss of African elephant populations is due to poaching; unfortunately, this has increased so dramatically in recent decades that Africa's elephants are now threatened with extinction. Due to poaching, hobby hunting, habitat loss, human-animal conflicts and climate change, the grey giants are becoming fewer and fewer.