Paintings made by animal paws, noses, claws and tails up for grabs

London, September 12 : Paintings that species like seals, pigs, kangaroos, giraffes, red pandas, rhinoceros, and komodo dragons have created using their paws, noses, claws and tails will be put up for sale at a three-hour auction in Silver Spring, Maryland, on Tuesday.

The new artistic movement has been christened "Noah's Art".

Mikki, a 22-year-old African elephant at the Louisville Zoo, is one of the animals whose work will be auctioned.

Being hailed as one of the leading exponents of the new American school, the elephant has learnt how to manipulate a paintbrush with her trunk.

Eliose, the talented orang-utan, was able to create her masterpiece by holding the brush in her hand.

A pig named Pinto applied the paint to the canvass with his snout and hooves.

An Asian elephant at Niabi Zoo, Illinois, produced a bold mixture of reds and yellows, while Zeppo the parrot grasped the brush in his beak to create his distinctive blue pattern.

The paw prints of a couple of racoons at Hutchison's Zoo, Kansas, created an attractive pattern of blues, reds and greens.

The artwork are currently housed at zoos and aquariums across the US.

"The artwork created by these animals helps to highlight the great animal care and conservation programs of accredited zoos and aquariums," the Telegraph quoted Jim Maddy, chief executive of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, as saying.

He revealed that creating art was safe for the animals, and all the paints used were non-toxic and washable.

ANI