Hunting by artists Gillie and Marc

CLICK HERE TO DONATE DIRECTLY TO WWF UK 

VISIT THIS CHIMP AT LONDON BRIDGE CITY BEFORE HE MOVES TO HIS FOREVER HOME ON 18 JAN 2023

TITLE
Wild Chimp Hunting

NAME
Chase (English name meaning to hunt or huntsman)

GENDER
Male

AGE
11

One of the most interesting findings was that chimpanzees hunt and were not, as the current understanding stated herbivores. Like humans, they eat meat making them omnivores. It makes up about 3% of their diet and their favourite meat it the red colobus monkey.

Chimpanzees either hunt alone or in groups. Usually, groups are made up of males but on the occasion, females have been known to join in. They look for prey both on the forest floor and in the trees (they like to look up to see if their favourite monkey is about!) Once they have caught their prize, the bounty is shared with all the members of the community. It’s actually thought that this is the most important part of hunting as it involves sharing and the bonding it provides. It’s especially interesting as chimps don’t need meat to survive, they could perfectly happily live as vegetarians.

This behaviour could be another insight into our own evolution. Some chimps have been seen sharpening sticks with their teeth and using them as spears to hunt bushbabies. This could be a very similar system used by early humans. It shows a high level of intelligence, manipulating tools, strategic thinking, and social cohesion. 

HOW TO HELP 
​Based off real animals that Gillie and Marc met while studying, the public will be able to meet individual animals. This will help them to realise that there are apes with unique personalities, thoughts and emotions. The loss of one individual is just as devastating as losing an individual human.

With public art, more people will come into contact with these sculptures, will stop and consider them, will take a photograph, and will discuss this with their friends and family. Through this increased exposure, the message of love, family, and conservation will be spread much further than any piece of art in a gallery ever could. It will bring people into close contact and will help them to fall in love. With love comes a greater urge to want to create a change and save the great apes.

​The sculpture will be aligned with the hashtags #LoveTheLast and #ChimpsAreFamily to raise unparalleled awareness about the sculpture’s cause across the globe.

To help protect the great apes you can adopt a chimp and help them via the WWF: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/chimpsarefamily

If you are interested in buying chimpanzee related art, you will also be directly helping real chimps in the wild with 30% going to WWF to continue their fantastic work for chimpanzee conservation: Click here to browse art > https://gillieandmarc.com/collections/chimps

ABOUT GILLIE AND MARC
Gillie and Marc’s highly coveted public artworks can be found worldwide including in New York, London, Singapore, Shanghai, and Sydney. They are Archibald Prize finalists, won the Chianciano Biennale in Italy, took out the Allens People’s Choice Award in 2016 and 2018 and Kids’ Choice Award in the 2016 Sculpture by the Sea and received the Bayside Arts Festival People's Choice Award in 2019 in Sydney.

The husband-and-wife duo are on a mission to make art for a better tomorrow. They are best known for their beloved characters, Rabbitwoman and Dogman, who tell the autobiographical tale of two opposites coming together as best friends and soul mates.

Gillie and Marc are also passionate eco-warriors and have dedicated their lives to protecting nature.

Gillie grew up with the wildlife in Zambia and Marc studied chimpanzees in Tanzania as a young man. Over time, the artists developed a deep appreciation for all living things and a desire to preserve the magnificence of the natural world. 

Through their art, Gillie and Marc aim to transform passive audiences into passionate advocates for animal conservation. Their mission is to use their work as a platform to continue spreading awareness about endangerment, which will ultimately lead to change and save species from extinction.

Their art has raised hundreds of thousands in donations for the many wildlife charities and causes they support through their project Love The Last.

Please follow @gillieandmarcart