What do dogs, chimpanzees, and elephants have in common? They can all be artists! Does your pet have what it takes to create amazing art like these animals?
Grizzler the dog is a photographer. No, he doesn't use his paw to take pictures. He had a camera on his chest to take pictures of his day. The camera took pictures when he was excited. His heart racing made the camera take a picture.
Grizzler took lots of exciting photographs. He took photographs of dogs, cats, and mushrooms. That must have been a strong camera!
Elephants can be artists, as well. In Thailand, elephants are trained to paint. Elephants use their trunks to hold paintbrushes. They have more than 40,000 muscles in their trunk. This means that they have lots of control. They can hold the brush on their own.
Elephants have been taught to paint beautiful landscapes and portraits. The art is sold to make money for a local charity. The charity looks after elephants.
Congo the chimpanzee started drawing when he was only two years old. By the time he was four, he had made about 400 paintings. That's a good way to stop boredom!
Desmond Morris worked with Congo. He worked with lots of other chimps. But he said Congo was different. He had lots of different forms and styles. He was a careful painter. He could focus for a long time.
Collectors went ape for Congo's work. His artwork was sold at auctions. The artist Pablo Picasso had one of Congo's paintings hung on his wall.
Some paint can be harmful to humans and animals. But all the paint used with animals is animal-friendly. This means that they are safe for animals to use. If they eat the paint by accident, it is not dangerous.
All of these animals created art with humans. But some animals create art in nature. The male bowerbird is a type of bird. He creates art to impress females. He collects lots of different objects. Then, he puts them on display. The bird uses objects like coins, ribbons, and pieces of glass to make art.
The bird makes the display look nice. He puts the objects in different positions. He uses sticks and grass to make it nice.
Parrots create art in their own way. Parrots can mimic sounds. This means they copy things that they hear.
Chico the parrot lives at Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in England. He sings songs that he hears. He sings songs by famous artists. He sings like Beyoncé. People travel from far to hear his beautiful voice.
If you feel bad about your art, don't worry. Anyone can learn to be an artist! It takes a lot of time. It takes a lot of practice. It takes a lot of focus.