I am excited to announce that this original oil painitng has been selected by the AFC jury for inclusion in the LIVE EXHIBIT, that will take place at VanDusen Botanical Gardens, September 22-25. In addition to the live exhibit, this artwork will also be featured in the Virtual Exhibit and companion book.

Black rhinos are the smaller of the two African rhino species. The most notable difference between white and black rhinos are their hooked upper lip. 

Of all the threats facing black rhinos, poaching is the deadliest. Black rhinos have two horns which make them lucrative targets for the illegal trade in rhino horn.  

Today, black rhinos remain critically endangered because of rising demand for rhino horn, from some Asian consumers, particularly in Vietnam and China, who use them in folk remedies. A recent increase in poaching in South Africa threatens to erase our conservation success, reaching an apex in 2014 when 1,215 rhinos were poached. Poaching numbers are slowly decreasing—594 were poached in 2019—but poaching continues unabated with numbers remaining unsustainably high.