CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN ZOO

Colorado Springs has a renowned artist living in its midst that most residents are unaware of. Her work has been featured in galleries, showcased at the Colorado Springs Airport and City Council chambers, purchased by patrons of varying economic and social backgrounds, and publicized in several publications. Who is this artist? Her name is Lucky and she is an African elephant residing at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

Born in 1980, Lucky has called Cheyenne Mountain Zoo home since 1981 after being orphaned in Kruger National Park, South Africa. She shares her residence with best friend Kimba, another female African elephant. The two have been together for 25 years.

One of the many things Lucky’s keepers have done to keep this highly intelligent animal mentally stimulated and challenged, was to teach her to paint as an “enrichment” activity. [A sample painting of Lucky's artwork!] Enrichment is a term used to describe various activities that increase the animals' physical and mental activity levels, and stimulate natural behaviors.

A quick study, Lucky took to this new activity in a matter of weeks. Despite her large size, she is quite attentive to detail as she applies paint to the canvas using her favorite paintbrush. (Elephants have over 100,000 muscles in their trunks, providing them great strength, dexterity and coordination.) Her medium is water-based tempera paint and, given a choice, Lucky prefers working in pinks and purples. Every painting is signed by the artist.

[African elephant Lucky paints on canvas with a brush held in her trunk.] Lucky often makes vocalizations while she’s painting, which sound very much like a loud purr. This is a contented noise, which gives every indication that she is enjoying expressing her creative side. However, unpredictable and temperamental as she is, Lucky has been known to stop in the middle of a painting session if people are talking while she’s working.

All proceeds from the sale of Lucky’s paintings and trunk prints and Kimba's footprints go towards the care and feeding of all the animals. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is one of only a handful of accredited zoos in the nation that operates without local tax support. As a self-supporting facility, it depends on admissions, membership dues, donations and grants for funding.

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4250 Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Road Colorado Springs, CO  80906 Phone(719)633-9925  Fax (719)633-2254