Imagine walking through the streets of New York or Los Angeles and suddenly coming face to face with a life-sized elephant. Not one, but a whole herd. These elephants don’t trumpet or move, but they tell an extraordinary story – of wildlife, of people, and of our shared future. This is The Great Elephant Migration.
All photos by Lea
The Great Elephant Migration is a travelling public art exhibition featuring 100 life-sized elephant sculptures, crafted by Indigenous artisans from southern India. Each elephant represents a real member of a wild herd from the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, a landscape that supports one of the largest populations of Asian elephants.
Remarkably, the sculptures are made from Lantana camara, an invasive plant that chokes India’s forests. By transforming this destructive weed into something beautiful, the project helps restore ecosystems while creating a global stage for the elephants’ story.
At its core, the Migration is about coexistence. Elephants are wide-ranging animals, needing space to find food, water, and safe routes between habitats. Human expansion often cuts across these ancient pathways, creating conflict.
The Migration brings this reality to life in a way that no report or statistic can. Seeing a herd of elephants walking through a city makes people stop and think. It’s a call for empathy – not only towards elephants, but towards all wildlife that must find ways to live alongside us.
The initiative also empowers Indigenous communities. The sculptures are created by artisans from forest-dwelling groups such as the Bettakurumba, Paniya, and Soliga peoples. Their traditional knowledge of elephants and the land is invaluable, and the project provides sustainable livelihoods that honour and amplify their role in conservation.
Funds raised through the Migration support over 20 conservation charities worldwide, funding projects that restore habitats, protect wildlife corridors, and develop human-wildlife coexistence programs.
The Great Elephant Migration has been more than an art installation – it has been a reminder that conservation is not just about protecting animals, but about rethinking how people and wildlife can share the same planet.
Although the touring exhibition has now come to an end, its message of coexistence continues. You can still be part of this journey by supporting the work behind the Migration. Donations, merchandise, and conservation updates are available at thegreatelephantmigration.org
The elephants may no longer be walking city streets, but the cause they represent is very much alive – and still needs our help.