The Indianapolis Prize awards $250,000 to an animal conservationist who has achieved major victories in advancing the sustainability of an animal species or group of species. The Prize also awards five Finalists with $50,000 each. Granted biennially, this award was established to bring the world’s attention to the cause of animal conservation and the brave, talented and dedicated men and women who spend their lives saving the Earth’s endangered animal species.

Art Strategies worked with the Indianapolis Prize’s leadership and steering committee to select two international artists to create a series of two unique sculptures. These artworks serve as the physical awards given to the Indianapolis Prize recipient and the Jane Alexander Global Wildlife Ambassador.

Learn more about the Indianapolis Prize by clicking here.

I have an extremely strong conservation ethos and would like to make a significant change and an awareness for the plight of our planet and the animals that call it home.

This is the legacy I would like to leave.

—Bruce Little

Born in South Africa, Bruce Little developed an early passion for the African wilderness through his childhood spent in the bushveld. He became a conservationist and professional game ranger, working at the famous private game reserves of Londolozi and Singita in South Africa. For the following ten years he lived on a private conservation project in the Eastern Cape where he restored Hopewell, a former beef and sheep ranch, to its original wilderness state. This included the reintroduction of indigenous wildlife to the reserve. The twenty years spent in the wilderness has given Bruce invaluable insight into his subjects, which he holds so dear.

Learn more about Bruce and see more of his work here.

Zheng Lu graduated from Lu Xun Fine Art Academy, Shenyang, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in sculpture in 2003. In 2007, he received his Master of Fine Arts degree in sculpture from the Central Academy of Fine Art, Beijing, while also attending an advanced study program at The École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-arts in Paris. Zheng Lu has participated in numerous exhibitions in China and abroad, including at the Museum on the Seam, Jerusalem; The Ekaterina Cultural Foundation, Moscow; Musée Océanographique, Monaco; Musée Maillol, Paris; the National Museum of China, Beijing; the Long Museum and the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai. In 2015, the artist had a solo exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei, one of the leading institutions in the region.

Born in Chi Feng, Inner Mongolia, 1978 | Lives and works in Beijing.

See more of his work here or contact Art Strategies for advisement.

The first recipient of Zheng Lu’s sculptural award was His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco for a life long commitment to the environment. Conservation of marine habitats is a priority for his Monaco Foundation, such as, safeguarding the biodiversity and resources of the Mediterranean basin, the Polar Regions and habitats in underdeveloped countries.

Art Strategies’ owner and chief curator, Mindy Taylor Ross, with her husband and two sons at the 2021 Indianapolis Prize Gala.

Photo credit: Matt Mays at Mays Entertainment.