Saola Tracks #9: New Auction, new artists
Dear Friends of Saola,
We are delighted to announce, coming later this month, the Saola Foundation’s next online benefit auction. We’ve put together something quite special for you – we’ve engaged a small group of fantastic artists to each contribute an original Saola or Asian themed work of art, made exclusively for the auction.
The auction will run from Tuesday, November 23 through Sunday, November 28. This spans the American Thanksgiving holiday, which we think appropriate. Here is your chance to give something back in gratitude for the Earth, for all it has given us – and get something rather special for yourself in return!
We will reveal the auction items over the next couple of weeks and provide further details about the auction and how to bid. For now, we would like to introduce you to the donor artists, to give you a sense of what lies in store:
Dao Van Hoang is widely regarded as Vietnam’s premier wildlife artist. Born in Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City), Hoang stared drawing with chalk on his family’s concrete floor when he was two years old. He subsequently, lived, studied and worked in France for many years, before returning home to Vietnam in 1996. After a career as a creative director in advertising, Hoang devoted himself full-time to wildlife painting in 2013. His work is extraordinary, and he has created a new Saola painting for the auction. Learn more about Hoang and his art at: www.daovanhoang.com.
Zoë Williams is a pioneer of sculptural needle felt, and has been pushing the boundaries of the medium for over a decade. She creates otherworldly creatures inspired by animals, dreams, animation, and kawaii subculture (www.zoewilliams.com). Her work has been exhibited in galleries around the world. A native of New Orleans, Zoë now lives and creates in New York City. Wait until you see what she’s made for our auction…!
Eric Losh (http://www.elosh.com/) is already well-known to many of us in the Saola world – for his series of sublime, Saola-themed holiday cards. Eric is a commercial art director by day, and a fantastic nature painter and illustrator in his free time. He’s created a wonderful new work of Saola art for the auction.
Alonda Robichaud is the daughter of Saola Foundation President Bill Robichaud. Raised in Laos, she now lives in New York City, where she stays connected to her Lao roots through her weaving loom – weaving being the main visual art form in Lao culture. Alonda is a master weaver, and has something rather special from her loom for the auction.
Brent Huffman is back by popular demand with one of his wonderful knitted Saolas (last year’s auction item). Brent has been using knitted animals to raise funds for conservation for more than twenty years. His exquisite, hand-made works combine his knitting skills (learned from his grandmother), zoological training, and a desire to inspire passion for conservation. In particular, Brent has been enthralled by ungulates for as long as he can remember. His website — ultimateungulate.com — recently marked 25 years of celebrating the diversity of hoofed mammals, especially rare, unusual, and overlooked species – like Saola! In his spare time, Brent is the Lead Keeper of Mammals at the Toronto Zoo.
Bill deBuys is also already known to many of us, as the author of the book The Last Unicorn, a profound and reflective exploration of the effort to save Saola. His newest book, set in Nepal, is just out, The Trail to Kanjiroba: Rediscovering Earth in an Age of Loss. Bill views this book as the third in a conservation trilogy that started with The Last Unicorn. He is donating for the auction an autographed and personalized hardcover copy of his new book. Learn more about Bill and his remarkable body of work at: www.williamdebuys.com
The auction artists above all have something in common – all have been involved in supporting Saola conservation in one way or another for several years. We are inspired by their passion and commitment – and hope you will be, too.
Finally, there will be a special auction item offered by Saola Foundation President Bill Robichaud. Watch this page for more information…
ZZ tops
One of the Founding Supporters of the Saola Foundation for Annammite Mountains Conservation is beautiful Zoo Zlin, in the eastern Czech Republic. We are delighted to announce, with much gratitude, that Zoo Zlin has recently contributed an additional $8,000, to help support the salary in 2022 of the Saola Foundation’s Technical Director, Rob Timmins. We are particularly grateful to Marketa Horska and Roman Horsky of Zoo Zlin for their generosity and commitment. Dekuji!