CAG on museums: The Curious Case of…Philippe the Flip Flop Elephant

During the October half-term, Philippe the elephant made of flip flops, was installed at the Great North Museum: Hancock. The elephant was purchased from the Ocean Sole Flip Flop Recycling Company in Kenya in 2013 as part of the Stories of the World Project of the Cultural Olympiad which took place at the museum last year.

The elephant is made of flip flops that have been recycled as part of a local grassroots initiative in Kenya. The organisation works to educate and innovate, while providing sustainable ecological solutions for the country. Flip flops and plastics are one of the major pollutants of the Indian Ocean. Now Ocean Sole recycles around 400,000 flip flops a year and creates artistic opportunities while providing jobs in Nairobi and other coastal cities.

As a new addition to the World Collections, we decided to display Philippe the elephant in the Living Plant Gallery of the GNM, because it is a gallery that children often see when they first walk in. It is also directly below the World Cultures gallery upstairs, with other pieces from Kenya on display. The interpretation of the elephant was also intended for younger audiences and family. The Project Coordinator for the Stories of the World Project brilliantly offered the chance to give feedback, especially from children, to inform the future interpretation of the object.

The idea is to ask a changing question to audiences and allow them to leave their responses to shape future interpretation of the elephant. The first question was, ‘How do you think Philippe feels about travelling from Kenya to the Great North Museum?’ So far the responses have been quite humorous and sweet.