Location: Chinatown, Toronto, Canada
Artist: Nick Sweetman
For: East Meats West Toronto
Curated by: Manidoo Nemeen, Sadie Rock
Supported by: StreetARToronto, Toronto Chinatown BIA
Year: 2023
Photo Credits: Nick Sweetman
“The giant panda bear lives only in a few mountain ranges in central China and is considered a living fossil, having diverged from the common ancestor it shares with other bears about 19 million years ago. Wild panda populations are estimated at 1500-3000, but numbers appear to be increasing and it has gone from “Endangered” to merely “Vulnerable.” Unlike the other 7 species of bear on this planet, the panda’s diet is 99% vegetarian, consisting of bamboo shoots and leaves, (they will occasionally eat birds, rodents or carrion if the opportunity presents itself but they are not especially active hunters). Because they still have the digestive system of a carnivore, pandas get little energy or protein from their diet and must eat 9-14 kilos of bamboo per day, necessitating around 40 daily poops.
The word panda was borrowed from French, and originally comes from the Nepali word “ponya” which means bamboo-eater. The name giant panda was to differentiate it from the much smaller red panda, which also eats bamboo, but the two are not closely related.”
Nick Sweetman
USEFUL LINKS:
Nick Sweetman in this blog | Instagram
Categories: OperArt, Street art
Barbara Picci 