Mary Cummins Animal Advocates Los Angeles California Wildlife Rehabilitation Real Estate

Mary Cummins Animal Advocates Los Angeles California Wildlife Rehabilitation Real Estate
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Saturday, January 17, 2015

Banksy committed animal cruelty in pink elephant animal exhibit - Mary Cummins, Animal Advocates



Photo used fair use copyright to show use of illegal bull hook. Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england


I just watched the Banksy documentary "Exit through the gift shop." There is a scene in there where he painted an elephant for his exhibit. In the movie he said he painted her with "12 liters of children's face paint." That is an absolute lie. He used red poster paint meant for wood and paper only as the base paint. He then added gold metallic paint. That paint was meant to be used with a barrier product and only to be left on for three hours maximum. Banksy left the paint on the elephant for days. In fact he would not let the elephant lay down and sleep for days so she wouldn't mess up his paint job. 

These are photos I personally took at the exhibit in Los Angeles, California September 2006. Paint used on elephant. These are the brushes he used to paint the elephant. This is his box of supplies. Below are closer photos of the paint he used. 

Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england


Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england

Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england

Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england


September 15, 2006 Banksy had an art show in Los Angeles. He rented an elephant from "Have trunk will travel" for his exhibit. He painted this elephant bright red with gold stenciled markings. He painted her eye lids, ears, trunk, tail, belly and private parts. I received many complaints when animal lovers saw the elephant on the news for the VIP grand opening. I'm sure this animal cruelty was intentional guerilla marketing for his show. He did the same to farm animals, click here for story.

Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england


Elephant in 105 deg trailer
The next day I went down there to see for myself. I went through the Humane Academy and Police Academy to become a Humane Officer. The elephant's owner let me look at the elephant and the box of paints. I photographed the labels of the paints. It was red poster and wood only paint and Cinema Secrets gold metallic paint. The owner told me they weren't allowing the elephant to lay down so she wouldn't mess up her paint job. Every day they would still touch up her paint.

From a skin painting website. “Non-Toxic” does not mean “safe for skin.” Acrylic craft paints are not meant to be used on the skin – nor are watercolor markers or pencils. Just because the package says "non-toxic" does not mean that it is safe to put on skin. Many people are allergic to the non-FDA approved chemicals and colorants used in craft paints (such as nickel), and will break out in a rash from these paints. Watercolor markers (or "washable markers") do not remove from skin easily – it can take days to get the stain removed. The "washable" part of the name refers to fabric, not skin."

They go on to say not to use glitter paint on skin. That is why the gold paint was for professional use only by a makeup artist. It was to be applied over a barrier cream and not kept on longer than three hours, on humans, not animals. People have become very ill and even died from using regular  paint on their skin. They die from  nickel and silver poisoning from the paint besides allergic reactions and over heating. Photo of elephant with cracked toenail. 

Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england


I went home and wrote a report about the paint. I gave it to the GM of Animal Services. He verified the report then called the owner and told her she must remove the paint. It took two days but they finally removed the paint. The elephant was still in the exhibit but without her paint. A report was filed against the elephant owner to the USDA for allowing her to be painted with wood and paper paint. People contacted Banksy's management about his act of animal cruelty. He left the country and didn't respond. 

After washing paint off
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england


Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Banksy, artist, exhibit, los angeles, california, 2006, usa, mary cummins, animal advocates, gallery, downtown, have trunk will travel, animal cruelty, animal abuse, paint, toxic, unsafe, england
Report filed by Bill Dyer of In Defense of Animals with the USDA.


Contact the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Science at http://www.oscars.org and let them know that you don't think a film that includes animal cruelty should be up for an Academy Award. This documentary is nominated for an Academy award. People are saying they believe he will win. Here are some email addresses for you to send in a complaint. 

publicity@oscars.org,
tcurtis@ oscars.org,
pressphoto@oscars.org,
tmelidonian@oscars.org,
rmiller@oscars.org,
amaltz@oscars.org,
bdavis@oscars.org,
institutionalgrants@oscars.org,
zfriedlander@oscars.org,
mcompton@oscars.org,
sganis@oscars.org,
lwertin@oscars.org,
bhall@oscars.org,
lmerh@oscars.org,
mayala@oscars.org,
nkojen@oscars.org,
tthompson@oscars.org,
nicholl@oscar.org,
lunger@oscars.org,
ampas@oscars.org,
rhaberkamp@oscars.org

A few years ago "Have trunk will travel" had a problem with one of their other elephants.

"June 10, 2001: Spooked Circus Elephant Charges, Knocks Over Child at the Denver Zoo - Hope, an 18-year-old, 6,700-pound Asian elephant, was frightened by a falling water drum as she and a smaller elephant named Amigo were being washed. Startled, Hope slammed her trainer, Jim Williams, into a wall and knocked over Amigo. She then stepped over a 3-foot barrier and took off on a run. The child was knocked from her stroller as Hope came running down a path. The child's mother, who has not been identified, said she believes her daughter was hit by the elephant's trunk but is unsure if Hope also hit the stroller. The girl was treated at Children's Hospital for minor injuries and released, said Fire Department spokesman Randy Atkinson. Williams received cuts and bruises, a man sprained his ankle, and a woman suffered an asthma attack while running away from the elephant, Atkinson said. It took almost three hours to get Hope back into a pen. Amigo and Hope were brought to the Denver Zoo by Have Trunk Will Travel, owned by Gary and Kari Johnson of Southern California."

Here is "Have Trunk Will Travel," http://www.havetrunkwilltravel.com/

Back in 2003 Banksy painted some live farm animals in an exhibit called "Turf Wars." They became ill and had to leave the exhibit.http://gothamist.com/2003/07/21/banksys_turf_war.php Banksy stated he wanted to continue to show the exhibit. He's also painted rats and roaches in the past.

Below is Bill Dyer of In Defense of Animals legal complaint about the abuse of the elephant in the exhibit.

"I attended all three days of the Banksy art exhibit on Hunter Street, downtown L.A. (September 15, 16, 17).  There was a preview on Thursday, September 14th which I did not attend.  I don’t know if the painted elephant, Tai, was there that day or not.

On Friday when I arrived at noon there was a small crowd waiting in line.  The elephant was in an alley way next to a large warehouse.  Animal control officers were there as well as the exhibit’s own security which would not allow pictures to be taken of the elephant which was getting a touch-up paint job.  The elephant, as I understood, had been painted on Thursday by the artist, Banksy, himself.  The elephant had been rented from the company, “Have Trunk Will Travel” run by Mr. and Mrs. Gary Johnson, who were in attendance with their bull hooks.  At 2 PM the elephant was walked up on a ramp to the inside of the warehouse and into a living room setting.  His paint motif matched the living room’s wallpaper.  The elephant was behind a three-foot high picket fence, perhaps six feet from the audience.  A child could have easily knocked the fence over.  The elephant would stand in this setting for the next six hours.  It was hot in the warehouse and I saw no water inside the exhibit.

On Saturday, when I arrived before noon, Ed Boks, General Manager of the Department of Animal Services, was there in consultation with others in an attempt to find some means to prevent the elephant from being shown.  The public safety issue came up but it would take five days to evoke the permit and, by then, the exhibit would be closed.  Because of the Los Angeles Times’ front page photo of the elephant and the large story on the front page of the California section of the Times, a large crowd gathered.  At 2 PM the elephant was put into the living room setting for the next six hours.  Large crowds surrounded the exhibit with many camera flash bulbs popping.  The media turned out and the story was featured on television news reports that evening.

On Sunday, the crowd was very large.  It had been determined by animal control that the paint used on the elephant was harmful to skin and “Have Trunk” was ordered to wash all of the paint off of Tai.  Should she be painted again they would have to use child face paint instead.  The elephant arrived, washed, with a pink hue, and was put on exhibit again without the paint.  It was very hot inside the warehouse. 

It is my understanding that the Department of Animal Services will be revising the permit guidelines so that this will not be allowed to happen again.  (The permit was issued before Ed Boks became General Manager.) Most of the public couldn’t understand why the artist – so concerned about the conditions in this world - would use a live elephant instead of one of his own design.  Some people were in tears. 

The elephant issue up-staged the artists’ graffiti art but proved profitable for Banksy, which may have been the intent anyway.  All of his works sold.  One large piece went for $82,000. (Brad Pitt and his wife bought three pieces.) 

Bill Dyer, In Defense of Animals"

http://www.facebook.com/animaladvocatesusa


Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.
Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game and the USDA. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.


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