Today Florence Welch, Daisy Lowe, Pixie Geldof, Alice Dellal and Andrea Dellal rocked Selfridges Concept Store to visit the Emerald Queen and model the ‘Emeralds for Elephants’ collecion to support the World Land Trust. The five celebrities modelled the collection with 448 carats of ethical Gemfields Zambian emeralds next to the ‘Emerald Queen’ elephant, made by Sabine Roemer, which features a staggering 678 carat Gemfields Zambian emerald expected to raise an additional £100,000 for the protection of wild Asian elephant habitat in India.
“ I have learnt so much about the World Land Trust and love their concept of creating and protecting wildlife corridors in India in order to save the endangered Asian elephant. This is an amazing cause I am thrilled to support”. Florence Welch (Florence and the Machine)
The World Land Trust, Gemfields and bespoke jeweller, Sabine Roemer have collaborated to create an extraordinary life size, Emerald Elephant set to be the most valuable design in this summers hotly anticipated Elephant Parade and has been aptly named, ‘Emerald Queen’. Sabine has designed and decorated this fibreglass elephant with emerald dust and a staggering 678carat oval emerald that is the outstanding centrepiece of the elephants’ jewellery headpiece.
This Gemfields emerald has followed an ethical and traceable route from the Gemfields mine in Zambia, to Jaipur where the gem was cut by hand and then shipped to London to be set by Sabine. Gemfields strict ethical and environmental policies combined with the conservation achievements of the World Land Trust will make this emerald design the greenest in every sense of the word!
The World Land Trust / Sabine Roemer/ Gemfields , Emerald Queen is part of the Elephant Family’s, Elephant Parade, where 260 elephants will take to the streets of London from May to July 2010. Billed as the capitals largest public art exhibition, the Elephant Parade will embrace all that is excellent about London when Sotheby’s auction each of the elephants to raise crucial funds for the critically endangered Asian elephant. Proceeds raised by the Green Queen will go to the Elephant Family and World Land Trust and with Sabine Roemer’s track record this is expected to be a significant amount. Sabine Roemer designs are becoming highly sought after and her last jewelled sculpture was bought at the Mandela Day auction in New York by Morgan Freeman.
The Elephant Family is the largest elephant charity in the world and founded by Mike and Marc Spits. The parade was brought to London by Mark Schand and has amazing support by their Trustees and Patrons like Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, Goldie Hawn, Sir George Martin CBE, Sarah, Duchess of York, Tanaz Dizadj, Priya and Cyrus Vandrevala, Caroline Casey, Lorin Gresser, Ashwan Khanna, Patrick Mark.
The elephant parade launched on Trafalgar Square in London, May 4, 2010.
The life-size model herd was led by Mark Shand, trustee of Elephant Family, a charity that helps safeguard Asian elephants and enables a more harmonious environment between man and creature.
The charity commissioned an impressive array of talent to produce 260 hand-painted elephant artworks that have now taken up residence all over London. Among the creators were artists Mark Quinn, Sabine Roemer, Jack Vettriano, and Sacha Jafri; designers Julien MacDonald, Diane von Furstenberg, John Rocha, Alice Temperley, Lulu Guinness, Nina Campbell, and Nicky Haslam; and iconic photographer Peter Beard.
Selfridges has given this Emerald Elephant by Sabine Roemer royal treatment in the Wonder Room, where it will reside from 5th May to July 2010.
