World Renowned Artist Paints in Limbe Wildlife Centre
Limbe, Cameroon – Daniel Taylor, a high realism wildlife artists based in Canada, will paint in Limbe Wildlife Centre from 15-18 November 2007. Visitors will have free entrance to the centre during this period.
On the 15th of November a creative art workshop will be held for and with Cameroonian artists, featuring the Cross River Gorilla. This workshop is part of the AFC Flag Expedition in Cameroon, a collaborative project of Daniel Taylor, Artists for Conservation and the African Conservation Foundation.
Earlier this month, Taylor visited the Lebialem Highlands in South West Cameroon in order to study, photograph and sketch the natural habitat of the Cross River Gorilla and chimpanzees. A slide show of this expedition as well as Taylor’s wildlife art will be available during the event.
The Cross River Gorilla is Africa’s most endangered primate, with only 250-300 individuals left in the wild. They inhabit the last remaining highland rainforests in the border region of Nigeria and Cameroon. If nothing is done, this unique primate will disappear within the next 10-15 years. Cameroon can play an important role in the conservation of this globally important species for future generations.
In Cameroon, Cross River Gorilla conservation projects are conducted by the Environment and Rural Development Foundation (ERuDeF) with support of the African Conservation Foundation and other partners in the Lebialem Highlands and Bechati-Mone Forest Corridor and the Wildlife Conservation Society in Takamanda – Mone Forest Landscape.
As part of the AFC Flag Expedition, Taylor also visited primary schools in the project area and conducted film showing and art workshops with the children. For many children it was the first time that they have seen a gorilla or chimpanzee. The school art programme will therefore be expanded to cover other villages in the region.
Limbe Wildlife Centre is proud to host Daniel Taylor and collaborate to save the Cross River Gorilla from extinction. The workshop will be followed by an exhibition of the created artworks. Funds raised through the painting of the Cross River Gorilla created by Daniel Taylor will support both Limbe Wildlife Centre and the conservation of the Cross River Gorilla in the wild.
