West Ridge symbol of hope completed
The sculpture was started at the end of 2019 with Umcebo Design consulting on the project, working with educators at the school.
AN elephant sculpture, a collaboration between a creative design studio and West Ridge High School, has been completed after months of work, thanks to the efforts of dedicated staff.
The sculpture was started at the end of 2019 with Umcebo Design’s Robin Opperman and Ujala Sewpersad consulting on the project, working with Sibusiso Sithebe and Dolly Buthelezi, both from the school’s creative arts department.
The teachers welded together the frame of the elephant, covered the structure with many layers of paper mache, and finished it off by covering it with bottle caps.
Sibusiso said they wanted to keep the designs on the elephant African.
“It took us a month and a half to finish this part of the project, it was a big job! We are very happy with the finished project,” he said.
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Dolly said they had named the elephant Themba, which means hope.
“Hope is important, especially now with the pandemic,” she said.
Commenting on the finished project, West Ridge principal, Dr Suren Seetal, said: “It is marvelous! On behalf of the school governing body, educators and learners, I want to thank Sibusiso and Dolly for the initiative, hard work and sacrifice. They put a lot of hours into this project.”
Speaking about the project, Robin said: “It has been such an amazing experience working with principal Seetal and his team during lockdown. With the help of the special needs students, we have been able to add a new voice to the creative waste management dialogue and show what is possible in terms of making large public sculptures using mainly recycled materials collected by the community.”
The elephant will be displayed in the garden at the entrance to the school offices.
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