Thirteen life-size elephants will emerge from a Clonakilty cowshed on May 28th to grace nearby Inchydoney Strand, west Co Cork, until June 11th. A two-week stint at a surprise Dublin site follows, before the herd departs for several locations in England, finishing up their five-month migration at Brighton's Royal Pavilion in September.
The elephants are constructed from metal frames made from recycled cars (above) and covered in bright green topiary. US topiary expert Joe Kyte has overseen the project, with help from west Cork community groups, schools and artists, using materials donated by local businesses. The topiary elephant herd and their "Survival Tour" is the brainchild of Elephant Family, an Irish and UK charity dedicated to the preservation of the Asian elephant. The tour aims, through business sponsorship, to raise at least €1 million to buy land for vital wildlife "corridors".
According to Mary Powys, Survival Tour manager: "Over the past 100 years, the Asian elephant population has plummeted from 250,000 to about 25,000. If current trends continue, it will be extinct in the wild by 2050. Right now, starving and stressed herds are marooned in ever-decreasing forest lands. Habitat loss means they simply have nowhere to go. Starving herds are raiding villages and crops. Every, day terrifying reports of elephants killing humans and humans killing elephants hit the papers. In India alone, hundreds of poor farmers have died already from what's become known as 'human-elephant conflict'.
"Providing wildlife 'corridors' has been proven to help both elephants and humans," says Powys, "allowing them to co-exist peacefully. This is such a worthwhile project to support, because the money raised will be used to buy these crucial habitat lifelines across Asia." See www.thesurvivaltour.org, www.elephantfamily.org or call 023-58367 for details. Adrienne Murphy
Carboot soul
Apparently determined to prove the old adage that one person's junky trash is another person's funky find, those fine publicans at the Bernard Shaw in Portobello are hosting their third Toejam carboot sale next Saturday. In their own words, it's "all very simple - cars and vans flogging wares out of the hatchback, with some market stalls and clothes sellers filling the gaps in between". Throw in some drinks from the bar and home-made falafels from Bethlehem Falafel, and you have the makings of a bargain-finder's paradise. It's free in and it runs from 1pm to 6pm at the Bernard Shaw, 11-12 South Richmond Street, Portobello, Dublin 2. Call 085-7128342 for details. Davin O'Dwyer
Try the new drop-in dance classes
...each weekday morning, Monday May 12th to Friday May 23rd, from 11am to noon, at the National Concert Hall, as part of "Too Young To Be Old", a two-week dance project for 50-pluses with CoisCéim dance theatre company. To find out more, call 01-8780558.
Terrace temptation
While having a few rays of sunshine gracing our pale skin is a pleasure in itself, there's a lot to be said for finding a suitably luxurious locale to make the most of it. The garden terrace at the Merrion Hotel in Dublin provides one of the most sumptuous suntraps of all, and makes an ideal location for summertime al fresco dining.
New to the terrace this summer is the Hot Grill, where guests can enjoy delicious grilled meals from the purpose-built chef's station. If barbecued meats don't appeal to your sweet tooth, you can always enjoy delicious dessert bites from the "Summer Berry Menu". With treats such as Champagne jelly and strawberry raspberry crème brulee, home-made blueberry ice cream and the Merrion's summer sundae, let's hope the sun gives us enough opportunities to enjoy the opulence.
Head-master
One of Drumcondra's famous sons has just received international recognition, and if you're thinking of our former taoiseach, think again. Frank Hession has been tending the tresses of royalty, the rich and the famous for more than 40 years at his eponymous salon, while never forgetting his loyal local clientele. Named as the Intercoiffure Mondial Personality of the Year, Frank will be presented with his award in Rio de Janeiro during the world Hairdressing Congress later this month.
Treat yourself to a "hair manicure", a new service now available at the salon, which offers a blow-dry and hint of colour, all in just 30 minutes.
Hession Hairdressing, 108 Drumcondra Road, Dublin 9, call 01-8376265 for an appointment or more information.
Dash of colour
With four children, landscape painter Vera Gaffney has never had the luxury of retreating to a quiet studio. Pitching her studio in the heart of her home near her kitchen, Gaffney has become, over the past 14 years, one of Ireland's finest colourists. For the myriad of colours that burst from her canvases she uses just four tubes of paint: alizarin crimson, Prussian blue, cadmium yellow and titanium white - the magic is in the mix.
She finds her inspiration in the boglands and Curlew Mountains of Co Roscommon, but sees them in vibrant colour, rather than brown or black. Her friend, actor Brendan Gleeson, will launch her exhibition at the RDS, which runs from May 15th to 17th.
Sand in your ice cream
The second annual "Sand Sculpture Event" at Portmarnock Strand promises to put regular bucket and spade efforts to shame once again. On Monday, artist group Duthain Dealbh, who have been responsible for some spectacular sand creations in the courtyard of Dublin Castle in recent years, return to create some more temporary sand sculptures to mark the start of the summer season. This year, the artists will provide workshops with local primary school St Marnock's, so that they too can create their own unique sand sculptures. The work lasts until Sunday 18th, so get down to the seaside to check it out before nature takes its course. For details, call Fingal County Council's Arts Office on 01-8708449.