Downtown Livermore will soon be home to a herd of Indian elephants as part of a public art installation to amplify Indigenous knowledge and inspire the human race to share space.

Livermore Valley Arts and Walnut Creek-based Three Thirty-Three Arts are bringing the 30 life-size elephant sculptures to town from October 10 through December 6 as the exhibit’s only West Coast stop in 2026.

Each elephant is modeled on a real animal in southern India’s Nilgiri Hills. Around 200 Indigenous artisans of the Coexistence Collective built them by hand from lantana camara, an invasive weed that crowds elephants out of critical forest habitat. Harvesting the weed used to make the sculptures contributes to restoring the habitat.

Anne Giancola, visual arts and education manager for LVA, said the material used to make the elephants can withstand varying weather conditions, allowing the sculptures to thrive outdoors for the full duration of the local display this fall.

“This exhibit is world famous, and so it is amazing and an honor that Livermore is getting the opportunity to showcase them,” Giancola said. “It’s going to be just this really great way to put Livermore on the cultural map for the Tri-Valley,” she added.

Giancola told the Pulse that bringing the herd to Livermore has been an effort more than two years in the making. Giancola first saw the exhibit herself in Rhode Island while visiting family on the East Coast in 2024 and was so moved by the sculptures that she set out to bring the migration to the Bay Area.

“It was incredible! It was so amazing to walk among this herd of elephants that I was just captivated by how wonderful it was and how many people were there and how everybody was just amazed at the elephants and they bring you such a sense of peace and joy,” Giancola said. “You can touch them, walk around them, take photos – they’re just wonderful.”

The exhibit's previous stop in California was in Beverly Hills back in 2025. Giancola said she was determined to bring them to Northern California, and more specifically, the Tri-Valley. After several attempts to reach the organizers, contact was made and plans set in motion to secure the exhibit.

Upon their arrival next month, the elephants will be spread out throughout the heart of downtown, including at Bankhead Plaza and Stockmen's Park, as well as a few in other select locations, according to Giancola.

The original traveling exhibit features 100 elephant sculptures but Livermore will be the first to feature a smaller version that curators aim to share with more communities in the future.

The elephants are expected to draw visitors from across California, creating tourism and economic benefits that extend well beyond the Tri-Valley. Neighboring communities will benefit as visitors explore the broader Bay Area — staying in hotels, dining, shopping and visiting nearby attractions before and after experiencing the exhibit.

Ahead of the exhibit’s installation, LVA and 333 Arts are continuing to seek sponsors and donations to fundraise for the exhibit.

“We invite you to help make this a regional success by sharing the exhibit with your community, exploring sponsorship opportunities, and partnering on cross-cultural promotional efforts that showcase the Bay Area as a destination for arts, culture, and conservation,” organizers with LVA and 333 Arts said.

The exhibit is free and open to the public. An opening ceremony is set to take place on October 10 at 10 am. where there will be a blessing of the elephants, which will be decorated in South Asian regalia, Giancola shared.

To learn more about the Great Elephant Migration, visit www.333arts.org/gem or livermorearts.org/the-great-elephant-migration.

Photo by Elephant Family USA