Watercolour elephant painting by British artist Jos Haigh - Sassy Sue

This elephant, Sassy Sue, is painted in pink for her femininity, flashes of gold for her playfulness and magenta to show the deep maternal bond for which elephants are so admired. Jos Haigh is a wildlife artist who uses colour to reveal character. The elephant’s eyes are shrouded in long wiry eyelashes to shield them for the dusting-down with dirt which they use to cool themselves.  The eyes, nestled among many creases and wrinkles, are nevertheless alert and wary.  She also deliberately understated the tusks, as if by doing this, it scorns the overemphasis placed on their material value.

Can you remember the very first painting that ‘wowed’ you?  That captivated you?  That stole your heart?  Wildlife artist Jos Haigh can.  She was very young, probably 5 or 6 years old and she was with her parents visiting their friends.  Playing with the other children, they were called in for lunch.  She remembers coming running in to the living room and stopped dead in her tracks.  In front of her above the fireplace (an unused feature in the warm climate of Kenya) was something that took her breath away.  It was a large painting.  Not just any painting.  It was this huge beast with a trunk and tusks thundering out of the picture amid clouds of smoke.  Its huge ears were swirling wide, its anger just coming out towards her.  Jos remembers this painting vividly.  After that, every time her family visited this home, she used to rush into the living room to see that painting, to feel her heart stop, to be enchanted and frightened both at the same time.  It was the first time Jos Haigh saw an elephant, in that painting.  Can you guess who painted it? Read on…

Jos Haigh was asked to be a valued Partner Artist for the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation some 10 years ago.  It was only when she explored David Shepherd’s paintings that she realised that the very first painting that ‘wowed’ her was an original painting by the one and only David Shepherd. What goes round comes round. She remains deeply committed to the Foundation.

The depth of colour on the trunk is in sharp contrast with its body, the elephant seems to be almost coming out of the frame.

Also, the shortened tusks, left white is deliberate to show the vulnerability of the elephant.

Anyone who has seen these animals in real life, especially in the wild, cannot fail to feel a real kinship with them and understand the need to protect, nurture and cherish them, as she does. Have you ever been to Africa? Seen the red elephants roaming wild in the savannah, red because they constantly spray themselves (to keep cool) with the red red earth of Kenya.  If you’ve been inspired by the African elephant this painting is for you. Cherish the memory in your home. Invite Sassy Sue to be part of your life. Make it an heirloom for your children.