A new sculpture has been unveiled on Front Street in Dawson City, Yukon, standing next to the town’s existing mammoth statue. The newly erected baby mammoth statue made its debut earlier this month as a tribute to the well-preserved baby mammoth, Nun cho ga, discovered by a placer miner in 2022.
The artist responsible for this creation, Halin de Repentigny, expressed his inspiration to revive the ancient creature. After conducting research on Nun cho ga and envisioning how the baby mammoth appeared 35,000 years ago, de Repentigny meticulously crafted the statue. The process involved sculpting a clay model, scaling it up, and utilizing materials like rebar and cement, which he described as labor-intensive.
From conceptualization to installation, de Repentigny dedicated a couple of months to complete the baby mammoth sculpture. Placing it alongside the larger mammoth statue erected in 2020 seemed like a natural choice to honor their shared heritage.
Similar to the giant mammoth statue, the baby mammoth sculpture was funded by a local miner, Tim Cole. De Repentigny collaborated with Cole to bring this artistic endeavor to fruition, aiming to enrich the town’s cultural landscape. He expressed his hope that children would enjoy interacting with the sturdy sculpture.
Looking ahead, de Repentigny envisions potential future additions to the mammoth sculptures, such as a female mammoth or a saber-tooth tiger. He emphasized the importance of community involvement in upcoming projects to share the creative process and workload.
During a visit to Dawson City, Melinda Stanfield from Portland, Oregon, marveled at the two mammoth statues, learning about their historical significance in the Klondike region. Impressed by the artwork, Stanfield emphasized the importance of recognizing and appreciating talented artists like de Repentigny.