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This story comes to me from a very sweet friend of mine Jimi Bingham. Robin Huffman, a few years ago expressed an interest in big cats that I work with. I had no idea what a sweet and beautiful soul she was. I'm so excited to introduce you to her talent as an artist and her gift for giving. I posted the video above of Robin Williams and the gorilla Koko. It's such an example of the gift we get when we reach out and make a connection with animals. I think this story will inspire you to find your gift and follow your passion.
An animal's eyes have the power to speak a great language.
My Mission
My entire life I have loved animals, and I wish to honor them. Being in their presence, and working to protect and nurture them, is a privilege and a passion. Beyond that, I find it fulfilling and peaceful to pay homage by studying their faces and capturing their essence in my artwork. In every way I can, I want to serve them.
After all, it is we humans who must be their voice in the world.
Have you ever gazed into the eyes of a gorilla? It is like looking at the face of God. It’s always seemed to me as if they know all the secrets of the universe and they’re not telling the humans. It was sitting with these gentle giants in the jungle, along with experiencing unconditional unbridled love by the baby monkeys in my care, that enabled me to become still enough to let this artistic gift flow from my heart and mind through my brush to the canvas.
photo by Guy Evron
My entire life I have loved animals, and I wish to honor them. Being in their presence, and working to protect and nurture them, is a privilege and a passion. Beyond that, I find it fulfilling and peaceful to pay homage by studying their faces and capturing their essence in my artwork. In every way I can, I want to serve them.
After all, it is we humans who must be their voice in the world.
Have you ever gazed into the eyes of a gorilla? It is like looking at the face of God. It’s always seemed to me as if they know all the secrets of the universe and they’re not telling the humans. It was sitting with these gentle giants in the jungle, along with experiencing unconditional unbridled love by the baby monkeys in my care, that enabled me to become still enough to let this artistic gift flow from my heart and mind through my brush to the canvas.
photo by Guy Evron
It begins....
Our family moved virtually every year when I was growing up - to vastly different cultures each time. Dad was a Navy man. We were either saying hello to strangers, or saying goodbye to new friends. Always feeling like a stranger in a strange land, animals were my solace, my comfort......my closest friends. Throughout my childhood, it was mostly limited to domestic types - from cats and dogs to ducks, geese, chickens, horny toads, snakes and rabbits.
The exotics
As a young adult I sought out ways I could get closer to the magnificent exotic creatures that fascinated me. So I went to Kenya twice and helped build a safari camp there in 1989. On that dream of a trip I had the privilege of staying at the camp of George Adamson (of "Born Free" fame), and got to play with three 8-month old orphaned lions he was raising. It was one of the highlights of my life. Only 5 months later George was murdered by Somali bandits in a raid on his camp.
Navy seals
While living in Laguna Beach, I volunteered at a local seal and sea lion reserve. They sheltered the sick and the injured young elephant seals, harbor seals and sea lions which appeared up and down the Southern California coast. For those who were too weak or who had forgotten how to eat, we pureed their fish, adding vitamins and salt and then feeding them through a tube. Anyone for a herring smoothie?
Lions and tigers and ........LIGERS, "Oh my!"
A few years ago I wished to leave Boston but didn't know where to go; the deliberating in my mind was maddening. So I took the summer off from work and didn't think about it at all. I had seen an animal show at a Renaissance Faire on the Cape which planted the idea in my head. After 9 months of requesting to volunteer, I was accepted at a private big cat reserve in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In return for laboring 14 hours a day 7 days a week and sharing a trailer with no running water, I was able to observe at close proximity lions, tigers, ligers (a male lion crossed with a female tiger) and baby bears, and eventually allowed to frolic with their African elephant and 14 baby tigers.
On the wings of eagles
In southern Utah I had the opportunity to briefly study falconry and hawking, and learned that I was not prepared for the commitment of actually owning a bird of prey. But it was a fascinating experience; I got to hike up to abandoned eagles' nests, and hold a falcon and a golden eagle. Falcons can dive up to 200 mph, and eagles have 600 pounds of crushing power in their talons. Wow!
Primates - the magnificent innocents
In the summer of 2007 I had the miraculous good fortune to serve as a volunteer at the Ape Action Africa, a sanctuary in Central Africa for over 200 orphaned primates. In addition to communing with gorillas, baboons and chimpanzees, I had the privilege of being a surrogate parent to three baby monkeys who made me laugh all the time.
Our family moved virtually every year when I was growing up - to vastly different cultures each time. Dad was a Navy man. We were either saying hello to strangers, or saying goodbye to new friends. Always feeling like a stranger in a strange land, animals were my solace, my comfort......my closest friends. Throughout my childhood, it was mostly limited to domestic types - from cats and dogs to ducks, geese, chickens, horny toads, snakes and rabbits.
The exotics
As a young adult I sought out ways I could get closer to the magnificent exotic creatures that fascinated me. So I went to Kenya twice and helped build a safari camp there in 1989. On that dream of a trip I had the privilege of staying at the camp of George Adamson (of "Born Free" fame), and got to play with three 8-month old orphaned lions he was raising. It was one of the highlights of my life. Only 5 months later George was murdered by Somali bandits in a raid on his camp.
Navy seals
While living in Laguna Beach, I volunteered at a local seal and sea lion reserve. They sheltered the sick and the injured young elephant seals, harbor seals and sea lions which appeared up and down the Southern California coast. For those who were too weak or who had forgotten how to eat, we pureed their fish, adding vitamins and salt and then feeding them through a tube. Anyone for a herring smoothie?
Lions and tigers and ........LIGERS, "Oh my!"
A few years ago I wished to leave Boston but didn't know where to go; the deliberating in my mind was maddening. So I took the summer off from work and didn't think about it at all. I had seen an animal show at a Renaissance Faire on the Cape which planted the idea in my head. After 9 months of requesting to volunteer, I was accepted at a private big cat reserve in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In return for laboring 14 hours a day 7 days a week and sharing a trailer with no running water, I was able to observe at close proximity lions, tigers, ligers (a male lion crossed with a female tiger) and baby bears, and eventually allowed to frolic with their African elephant and 14 baby tigers.
On the wings of eagles
In southern Utah I had the opportunity to briefly study falconry and hawking, and learned that I was not prepared for the commitment of actually owning a bird of prey. But it was a fascinating experience; I got to hike up to abandoned eagles' nests, and hold a falcon and a golden eagle. Falcons can dive up to 200 mph, and eagles have 600 pounds of crushing power in their talons. Wow!
Primates - the magnificent innocents
In the summer of 2007 I had the miraculous good fortune to serve as a volunteer at the Ape Action Africa, a sanctuary in Central Africa for over 200 orphaned primates. In addition to communing with gorillas, baboons and chimpanzees, I had the privilege of being a surrogate parent to three baby monkeys who made me laugh all the time.
Volunteering...Volunteering has had immense benefits - some I never would have predicted. I am
painting now, for example, because I'd been volunteering and the opportunity
arose. Because of giving my time, I discovered the miracles of infant monkeys.
I highly recommend it - following your passion and being a contribution in
whatever way makes sense for you. But so many other people have said it
more eloquently than I could. Here are a few quotes below:
I don't know what your destiny will be, but the one thing I know;
the only ones among you who will be really happy will have
sought and found how to serve. Albert Schweitzer
My art story ...
The year 2007 held a real surprise for me. I discovered painting! And I loved it! I knew I was artistic and could draw; my whole childhood was spent sketching and coloring, trying to capture on paper the fantasy fairytale landscapes in my head. Our family moved virtually every year. The only constants (besides my family) were the magical places inside my head and the love and comfort of my animals as I navigated through unfamiliar surroundings and people.
As a teenager and young adult, I mostly did crafts. At 12 I took an oil painting class. In college I majored in interior design, something I’d wanted to do since I was a young teen (I believe it was still springing from my desire to recreate the landscapes and environments of my childhood dreams). I attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where the interior design specialty was in the art department. So I did drawings, pencil, marker, and pastels - primarily drawings of interiors and furniture - and I built models. It was satisfying to come up with creative uses of materials. Once I had to portray some squishy Italian leather lounge seating and ended up making them out of decorator icing and then painting them, since I also knew how to decorate cakes.
During my entire adulthood I rarely touched pen to paper for art except interior design sketches, although I still did crafts on occasion. The last few years, with the advent of computers and my career transforming to project management, I even stopped doing crafts. Moving to New York City in 1999, life held such a whirlwind of activities in the city that never sleeps that it has seemed impossible to pause long enough to do anything that requires stillness.
Thankfully, in New York, an inspired animal-loving man, Bob King, who owns Humanscale furniture company, created an annual “Faces in the Wild” fundraising animal mask auction within the interior design industry to raise money for World Wildlife Fund. My first mask was Arthur, in honor of the magnificent lion I’d had a chance to hang out with in Myrtle Beach. The following year I did a cheetah, and the third year Ishmael the gorilla was “born."
Doing the masks for this auction not only reawakened my love of doing art and crafts, but also made me fall in love with gorillas for which I am eternally grateful.
In 2007, acting upon the desire to get close to gorillas, I spent 3 months volunteering at Ape Action Africa in Cameroon (formerly CWAF). While there, I had a chance to gaze at gorillas close up and raise infant monkeys. And due to unforeseen circumstances at the 2,600-acre reserve, there was an opportunity to replace and expand on all the signage in the park. In the process, I discovered I am a portrait artist. I had not painted in over 40 years. All I had at hand were primary colors of gloss enamel house paint, 1/8” plywood, and two brushes for the faces. There is no question in my mind that my work turns out as detailed as it does because of the inspiration of these beatific creatures.
The year 2007 held a real surprise for me. I discovered painting! And I loved it! I knew I was artistic and could draw; my whole childhood was spent sketching and coloring, trying to capture on paper the fantasy fairytale landscapes in my head. Our family moved virtually every year. The only constants (besides my family) were the magical places inside my head and the love and comfort of my animals as I navigated through unfamiliar surroundings and people.
As a teenager and young adult, I mostly did crafts. At 12 I took an oil painting class. In college I majored in interior design, something I’d wanted to do since I was a young teen (I believe it was still springing from my desire to recreate the landscapes and environments of my childhood dreams). I attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where the interior design specialty was in the art department. So I did drawings, pencil, marker, and pastels - primarily drawings of interiors and furniture - and I built models. It was satisfying to come up with creative uses of materials. Once I had to portray some squishy Italian leather lounge seating and ended up making them out of decorator icing and then painting them, since I also knew how to decorate cakes.
During my entire adulthood I rarely touched pen to paper for art except interior design sketches, although I still did crafts on occasion. The last few years, with the advent of computers and my career transforming to project management, I even stopped doing crafts. Moving to New York City in 1999, life held such a whirlwind of activities in the city that never sleeps that it has seemed impossible to pause long enough to do anything that requires stillness.
Thankfully, in New York, an inspired animal-loving man, Bob King, who owns Humanscale furniture company, created an annual “Faces in the Wild” fundraising animal mask auction within the interior design industry to raise money for World Wildlife Fund. My first mask was Arthur, in honor of the magnificent lion I’d had a chance to hang out with in Myrtle Beach. The following year I did a cheetah, and the third year Ishmael the gorilla was “born."
Doing the masks for this auction not only reawakened my love of doing art and crafts, but also made me fall in love with gorillas for which I am eternally grateful.
In 2007, acting upon the desire to get close to gorillas, I spent 3 months volunteering at Ape Action Africa in Cameroon (formerly CWAF). While there, I had a chance to gaze at gorillas close up and raise infant monkeys. And due to unforeseen circumstances at the 2,600-acre reserve, there was an opportunity to replace and expand on all the signage in the park. In the process, I discovered I am a portrait artist. I had not painted in over 40 years. All I had at hand were primary colors of gloss enamel house paint, 1/8” plywood, and two brushes for the faces. There is no question in my mind that my work turns out as detailed as it does because of the inspiration of these beatific creatures.
Title: Mowgli (2012)
Subject: juvenile female vervet monkey
Dimensions: 10x15
Medium: water-based latex on canvas
Name: Ghosty (2012)
Subject: elderly male vervet monkey
Dimensions: 12X12
Medium: water-based latex on canvas
Name: Skunkey (2012)
Subject: elderly male vervet monkey
Dimensions: 12x12
Medium: water-based latex on canvas
Name: Regus (2012)
Subject: male vervet monkey
Dimensions: 12x12
Medium: water-based latex on canvas
Title: Do You See Me?
Subject: young female mandrill Maggie
Dimensions: 9 x 27
Medium: water-based enamel paint on masonite
Title: Bigger than Life Diva (2010)
Subject: moustache monkey
Dimensions: 32 x 40
Medium: water-based enamel paint on masonite
Title: Kelsey (2012)
Subject: male vervet monkey
Dimensions: 12x12
Medium: water-based latex on canvas
Title: Alfie chowing down (2010) (detail of sloth nursery sign)
Subject: two-fingered sloth
Dimensions: 22 x 30
Medium: water-based enamel paint on wood
Title: Athena (2010) (detail of sloth nursery sign)
Subject: three-fingered sloth
Dimensions: 22 x 30
Medium: water-based enamel paint on wood
Title: Ishmael (2007)
Subject: adult gorilla
Dimensions:
Medium: florist foam, papier mache, leather, palm fibers, black sand, glass beads, grains
Title: Arthur (2005)
Subject: lion
Dimensions:
Medium: florist foam, papier mache, grains, black sand, glass beads, broom corn, wheat
Title: Nanga (2010)
Subject: young chimp
Dimensions:
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
(after a photo by Ian Bickerstaff)
Title: Sharlo (2010)
Subject: adult male chimp
Dimensions:
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
(after a photo by Ian Bickerstaff)
Title: Year of the Gorilla (2009)
Subject: Western Lowland gorilla
Dimensions: 48 x 84
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
(after a photo by Jo MacArthur)
Title: Tali (detail) (2008)
Subject: infant chimp
Dimensions:
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
(after a photo by Faith Davies)
Title: Supreme Mandrill (2009)
Subject: adult alpha male mandrill
Dimensions: 11x14
Medium: alkyd oil on Gessoboard
Title: Oliver (2008)
Subject: Olive baboon
Dimensions:
Medium: alkyd oil on pressboard
Title: Yoda (2008)
Subject: infant talapoin monkey
Dimensions: 11 x 14
Medium: oil on canvas
(after a photo by Ian Bickerstaff)
Title: Simossa at Sanaga-Yong chimpanzee sanctuary (2009)
Subject: adult female chimp
Dimensions
Medium: oil-based enamel on metal
Title: Shufai and Appolinaire (2007)
Subject: young Western Lowland gorilla and his caregiver
Dimensions: 20 x 30
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
Title: Nkan Daniel and Shai (2007)
Subject: two adolescent Western Lowland gorillas
Dimensions: 20 x 30
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
Title: Adventurous Steve (2008)
Subject: trompe l'oeuil of jungle with agile mangabey
Dimensions:
Medium: oil-based enamel on wood
Title: Christian (2007)
Subject: Cheetah
Medium: florist foam, paper mache, grains, black sand, glass beads
Donate...
Many of the "peaceful" creatures featured on my website - either in photographs
or artwork - are from the Ape Action Africa sanctuary in Cameroon. If you feel
inspired to help them, and others like them, I encourage you to donate here, and
make a difference in their lives.
http://www.apeactionafrica.org/donate/donate
Wildlife conservation is an incredibly complex issue. So I also challenge you
to learn more; become an advocate. Meanwhile, supporting this primate orphanage
with your dollars is a good start!
Many of the "peaceful" creatures featured on my website - either in photographs
or artwork - are from the Ape Action Africa sanctuary in Cameroon. If you feel
inspired to help them, and others like them, I encourage you to donate here, and
make a difference in their lives.
http://www.apeactionafrica.org/donate/donate
Wildlife conservation is an incredibly complex issue. So I also challenge you
to learn more; become an advocate. Meanwhile, supporting this primate orphanage
with your dollars is a good start!
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