Did you know "the Heart of an elephant weighs between 20-30 kg (40 and 60 pounds) and beats about 30 times a minute?
Indian elephants are largest weighing 8,000 and 9,000 pounds. In general, the smallest animals have the highest heart rates. The canary has been reported to have a rate of 1,000 beats, and the large domestic animals show rates of 40 or 50 beats. The elephant, with a rate of about 30 beats, fits perfectly into the picture, being the largest animal and having the lowest heart rate of any of the animals thus far studied.
from The Heart Rate of the Elephant by Francis G. Benedict, Robert C. Lee
I just can't resist these adorable applique/embroidered elephants of Rajasthan. I have been to India umpteen times but somehow, every time I manage to find some treasure trove with which I become completely obsessed. So the 2011 search for the new procured these animate elephant handworked pillowcovers which have probably been around forever, they are hanging all over the lanes of the main bazaar PaharGanj, but just recently some variations in stonewashed fabrics & florescent threadworks have caught my eye in one Rajasthali shop in Delhi.
Stay tuned in the near future for an AtelierOM bespoke collection of Elephants and other appliqued beasts on various khadi and natural linens done in collaboration with Rajasthani Female Artisans of SURE - Society to Uplift Rural Economy....maybe even a limited edition cloth children's book is in development to benefit human and beasts alike!)
The Handicraft programme of SURE was initiated with 224 women Artisans. Today SURE is successfully running 15 production centers supporting over 600 Artisans. Women are involved intimately from the production of handicrafts to the marketing of them. The main aim of the handicraft programme is to maximize the profits of the women workers and encourage them to become dignified entrepreneurs over being just casual wage-workers. 