Elephant Parade® Burbank 2024 Arrives at IKEA with 25 Hand-Painted Elephant Statues

A parade of hand-painted elephant statues arrived at the Burbank IKEA on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, which kicks off a two month long art exhibition around the city.  The elephants are on display at the upper IKEA parking lot until Friday, June 28 at 4:00pm, before they are brought to various landmarks, hotels, and high-traffic areas around Burbank.

This unique event has been paid for and initiated by Visit Burbank, the City of Burbank’s tourism association, which partnered with Elephant Parade. This globally recognized organization raises awareness and funding for Asian elephant conservation. 

Vice Mayor Nikki Perez welcomed guests at a special Grand Arrival event on Wednesday. “ We hope that these efforts will not only be an artistic treasure for our city but also attract people from all across Southern California to visit these spectacular works of art for themselves and enjoy our restaurants and businesses,” said Perez.

The 25 hand-painted statues showcase vibrant and imaginative designs that transform the elephants into powerful symbols of creativity and conservation. Some have even been designed and painted by celebrities like Khloe Kardashian, Katy Perry, Lily Tomlin, and Cesar Milan.

René de Wit, the Managing Director at Elephant Parade, took to the podium and thanked IKEA for hosting the elephant’s arrival. “Big applause for our supporting IKEA because elephants are the largest land mammals in the world, and this is the biggest IKEA of North America, which is amazing,” said de Wit. With less than 30,000 elephants left across Asia, Elephant Parade partners with Elephant Family, an organization dedicated to conservation initiatives and reversing the species’ decline.

Leading the pack of elephants is Mahua, a colorfully abstract elephant painted by artist Chariya Bissonnette, who attended the arrival and took pictures with her elephant while chatting with guests about the process and experience.

The exhibit is the first to come to the Los Angeles area, and the elephants will be on display around the city from July 1 to August 31. See the map of locations that include hotels, City buildings, the AMC walkway, Downtown Burbank, Magnolia Park locations, the Burbank Town Center, the Starlight Bowl, the airport, and more.

Watch our video reel from the Grand Arrival event here!