David Greybeard Art Project 2020

David Greybeard is a 9m x12m sculpture of a chimpanzee, made from lightweight, inflatable finely spun metallic material. It is the result of a collaboration between Australian artist Lisa Roet and Dr Goodall/The Jane Goodall Institute.

It will be installed at Arts Centre Melbourne for a limited time before embarking on its 2021-22 tour to key arts and sustainability conferences and festivals around the world.

Hand sewn in Melbourne with a team of creatives led by AIRENA, this artwork showcases the diversity and ingenuity of Australian art and its creative practitioners. David Greybeard is accompanied by a series of online forums developed with RMIT addressing art and sustainability. Celebrating the 60-year anniversary of the important work Dr Jane Goodall began in Gombe, Tanzania, art and conservation unite to create change. With the advent of Covid-19 we are pressed to address the key message of the David Greybeard project, 'Who are we, and how do we fit within this evolving world'.