1600 Pandas for WWF

Vivienne Tam Dress / Acne Studios Sandals

After supporting WWF back in Australia (you can still show your on-going support for #fightforthereef to help save The Great Barrier Reef!), I was thrilled to be in Hong Kong when the ’1600 Pandas World Tour: Creativity meets Conservation Exhibition’ was making its way through the city.

French artist Paulo Grangeon created 1,600 paper mach pandas made from recycled materials to represent the 1,600 real pandas left in the world today. Described as “an interactive, imaginative and sustainable environment where humans and nature coexist.”, the 1600 Pandas Exhibition visited famous Hong Kong landmarks with an aim to encourage awareness, support and funds towards nature conservation and sustainable development with WWF Hong Kong. Visually, it’s incredibly engaging. Conceptually, it’s a work of art.

It seems Luke and I weren’t the only ones who were incredibly excited to catch 1,600 paper mach pandas leaving their footprints around the city. We were merely two people in a sea of hundreds (and I mean hundreds!) who were all lining up just to get a glimpse of these adorable pandas. It was, as they’re saying, pandamonium… But we were lucky enough to meet 16 of these little pandas, and the precious cargo was even escorted by two official personnels. Why? Each panda needed to be accounted for as they were all up for ‘adoption’, with the proceeds of each sale going towards WWF Hong Kong.

I’m not sure if there’s any left but if you’d like to adopt one of these pandas you’ll find all the information here. Prices for each panda vary from $200 – $400 depending on size.

You can also show your support by following @1600pandas #1600pandas, but be prepared for soul crushing cuteness.

Here’s to hoping the exhibition makes its way to our Australian shores…

Photographer: Luke Shadbolt
Images: 1600 Pandas