As part of the Great Elephant Migration Project, “Marigold” is placed at the Sonoma Community Center for permanent display, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025. Marigold is based on a living juvenile elephant in India. (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
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As part of the Great Elephant Migration Project, “Marigold” is placed at the Sonoma Community Center for permanent display, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025. Marigold is based on a living juvenile elephant in India. (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
Much fanfare greeted Thursday’s arrival, installation and celebration of “Moringa and Marigold,” the two life-size elephant sculptures created in India’s Nilgiri Hills, which will now be on permanent display in the gardens outside the Sonoma Community Center.
A welcome reception Thursday evening at the center, 276 Napa St. in Sonoma, introduced the sculptures to the public.
The figures are a gift from the Sonoma-based KHR McNeely Family Foundation.
Rosemary McNeely, vice president and chief program officer of foundation first viewed the elephant sculptures in New York City. She said she was “amazed by their power and presence and the positive energy they radiated.”
The intricate sculptures are handmade by The Real Elephant Collective, a group of 200 Indigenous artisans from the Betta Kurumba, Paniya, Kattunayakan and Soliga communities of India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, according to the community center officials.
The project promotes harmony between humans and animals, frees forests from invasive species and supports Indigenous communities through sustainable businesses, according to the Great Elephant Migration website.
It also aligns with the city of Sonoma’s public art program.
The collective has been creating these sculptures for the past five years. Each piece is named after the elephant that inspired it, as a tribute to the elephants they live alongside.
The sculptures, depict a living matriarch, “Moringa,” and an adolescent elephant, “Marigold.”
Originally Published: September 5, 2025 at 11:47 AM PDT