Large crowds welcome Great Elephant Migration statues during Newport stop

NEWPORT - Cloudy skies and humidity the day after Independence Day did not curtail crowds, many gathered along the Cliff Walk and lawns of Rough Point, The Breakers and Salve Regina’s Ochre Court to get an up-close look at the life-sized elephant statues that will call the oceanfront their home until early September.

“Honestly, this is very spectacular,” Warwick resident Lynn Marrese said. “I’m texting people as I’m here.”

You might be hard-pressed to find a bigger fan of elephants than Marrese, other than perhaps the curators and organizers behind the art installation themselves. Modeled after a real herd of elephants, the sculptures are starting their first leg of a tour of the United States through an art installation called “The Great Elephant Migration.” The elephants were sculpted by 100 Indian artisans living in India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, in Tamil Nadu, out of invasive weeds that threaten the elephants’ habitat. The installation is presented by Art & Newport.

Newport is the first stop on the tour, with future stops scheduled for New York City; Miami; the Blackfeet Nation Buffalo Pastures, in Montana; and Los Angeles.

Marrese and her husband, Clem, heard about the exhibition through social media and the news and decided they had to see them in person.

“Some of the places they’re going, people might not have seen elephants, except for in a zoo, but not in a herd like this,” Clem Marrese said.

The free exhibition has brought scores of visitors to Rough Point, making Thursday, July 4, one of the busiest days in the mansion museum’s 20-year history, said Gina Tangorra, director of engagement and presidential initiatives at Newport Restoration Foundation. An average summer day at Rough Point might see 50 visitors. On July 4, the Rough Point had at least 576 visitors, Tangorra said.

“We’ve had so many locals come, some who have been here before and some who haven’t, and we’ve seen so many families this week alone, which has been really fantastic,” Tangorra said. “It's been better than we could have hoped, in terms of community engagement.”

Tangorra also said the themes behind the exhibit, such as conservation and eco-friendly living, echo the goals of the Restoration Foundation, which owns Rough Point and several other historic properties throughout the city. She also noted that Doris Duke, who founded the organization, was an advocate for animal welfare. The topiary depictions of Duke’s pet camels, Princess and Baby, welcome visitors as they cross the lawn on their way to the elephants.

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Being on the lawns of these popular estates, the elephants are well within the sightlines of those walking up and down the Cliff Walk. James and Erin Hatcher of Richmond, Virginia, were in Newport to visit their son when they spotted the sculptures as they traversed the rocky portion of the Cliff Walk behind Rough Point.

“We‘ve been stopping and looking,” James Hatcher said. “It’s nice that they’re visible from the path.”

Claire Faraday, an incoming senior at Salve Regina University, could be seen walking and chatting among the visitors at the university’s portion of the installation, which is directly accessible via the Cliff Walk. She is one of Salve’s Cliff Walk Ambassadors, a volunteer club at the school dedicated to sharing information with those passing along the historic trail. Faraday and her fellow ambassadors have been tasked with answering questions and sharing information about the installation as well while it is up.

“People are so kind, and it’s so great to be a part of the Newport community,” Faraday said. “Everyone’s really excited about this. I think it’s a great exhibit, it’s very immersive, people are able to walk with the elephants, touch the elephants, so I think it’s a wonderful exhibit to celebrate and to be on our campus.”

At Salve Regina University, Newport resident Libby Castaldi took a photo of her nephew hugging the trunk of one of the smaller elephant sculptures, an act encouraged by the signs dotted across the yard. Like the Marreses, Castaldi’s mother, Sandy Castaldi, and her sister’s family came from Warwick, having heard about the art exhibition on social media.

“It’s very impressive,” Sandy Castaldi said. “When you walk out there and you see them, it looks like a whole herd of elephants coming with the mothers and the babies. It’s beautiful.”

Andy, Libby’s nephew, said he liked how realistic the sculptures were, although he noted they lacked fur on the end of the tails. His brother liked the smaller sculptures the most. The family has taken the boys to Newport before to see the mansion museums, and they love family events, Sandy said.

“I feel like the whole thing represents family, too, with the all different-sized elephants,” Libby Castaldi said. “They all come in a herd, just like us.”