"Unchaining the Elephant"
Graphite, charcoal 25 x 19 inches When I was young, my parents took my sister and me to the circus. I remember how I was overjoyed to see one of my favorite animals, an elephant, balancing on a brightly colored ball. Walking out of the pavilion, dad told me a sad story about them. He said that circus elephants are chained to a short post when they are babies. After countless attempts to break free, baby elephants come to accept the chain as the limit to their lives. Even as adults, they are imprisoned in this mentality that they don’t attempt to escape, although they’re strong enough to break free. This thought really stayed with me. On one hand, I felt sad for the elephants, and guilty for enjoying their performance. On the other, dad asking “what are you chained to Cathy?” rang in my head. I created a drawing as a way to recapture the moment, and think about the sad fate of circus elephants as well as dad’s question. What are we chained to? |