Lieutenant Governor unveils new orangutan sculpture at Jersey Zoo
On Thursday 30th July 2020 Jersey’s Lieutenant Governor, Sir Stephen Dalton, unveiled a life-sized Sumatran orangutan sculpture at Jersey Zoo.
The impressive corten steel sculpture, inspired by the zoo’s resident male orangutan, Dagu, was created by Michael Gautron and generously donated to Durrell by David Williams. This sculpture now joins several works of art at the zoo, including animal sculptures, colourful street art, and the popular ‘Gerald Durrell’ Go Wild Gorillas sculpture.
Durrell’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Lesley Dickie, said, “People come to an appreciation of nature through different journeys and experiences. Beautiful and provocative art can reach people’s hearts and minds and make them consider our world from another perspective. This amazing sculpture is one such powerful piece of art and will have a permanent home here at Jersey Zoo, nestled next to the island home of our orangutan family. Made with exquisite detail, it is a testament to the skills of the artist Michael Gautron, and we truly thank David Williams for his kind donation of the sculpture to Durrell.”
David Williams, who generously donated the sculpture, commented, “We are very fortunate on this island to have one of the world’s most iconic conservation centres of excellence on our doorstep. It’s nice to be able to help out in some small way, especially at a time when they need as much support as possible.”
The remarkable sculpture, titled ‘Guarding Our Future’, portrays a majestic male orangutan swinging through his forest home, and can be found next to the zoo’s orangutan islands overlooking the tamarin woods. The Durrell team hopes that visitors will enjoy discovering this magnificent piece of artwork as they explore the zoo.