Artist Guy Combes’ star in international wildlife painting and conservation continues to rise. He is actively involved in several groups including the Soysambu Conservancy (protection of Africa’s Great Rift Valley ecosystem), the Action for Cheetahs in Kenya and efforts to prevent the Tanzanian government from building a road across the northern migration routes of the Serengeti National Park. Elephants are another of Guy Combes’ beloved causes.
“Elephants,” says Guy Combes, “are to the Amboseli National Park what wildebeest are to the Mara/Serengeti, which is to say that the environment suits them perfectly. The juxtaposition of forest on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro and the plains and swamps of the Amboseli lake basin are an Eden for the elephant who rotate on a daily basis, moving en masse to the most abundant food supply. On the way back to camp one day I found myself directly in the way of a gathering of several herds, numbering around 300 in total, that were making their way down from the mountain to the swamp to cool off in the midday heat. They were so absorbed in reaching the water that they were oblivious to my presence and simply walked around my parked vehicle where I had resigned to sit and wait. There was simply nowhere to go to get out of their way and even if I had tried I feared I might provoke one of the large males. I was inspired to paint one of these bulls walking towards me through the dust, his head nodding and swaying with great and elegant movement, followed by several females and young. This now ranks at the top of my many experiences that have left me in complete awe of the scale and majesty of nature and I will revisit this scene many times again in my mind and most probably on canvas.”
Climate change, poaching and relentless human development are threatening the future of these great Amboseli elephant herds and there are many conservation warriors fighting to save them, including The Amboseli Trust for Elephants.” www.elephanttrust.org

This small herd of Rothschild giraffe is making its way across the Great Rift Valley as pelicans from Lake Elmenteita pass overhead. Less than 700 of the Rothschild giraffe are thought to remain in existence, possibly only 500. Their habitat is severely depleted and this giraffe subspecies can only be found in the wild in areas of Murchison Falls National Park in Uganda, Nakuru National Park in Kenya and Soysambu Conservancy, also in Kenya. “At Soysambu we have a population of 60 that are breeding very successfully,” says artist Guy Combes. The Soysambu Conservancy is a non-profit organization whose goal is to preserve Africa’s Great Rift Valley ecosystem for the benefit of future generations of both man and animal.

“Find a sausage tree,” says Guy Combes, “and the chances are good you’ll find a leopard as well. They are ideal for leopards, with their large broad branches to sprawl out on or to place a kill for safekeeping away from lions, hyenas and jackals. Leopards have evolved incredibly strong fore and hind leg muscles specifically for climbing trees. This trait allows them to avoid fighting with other animals of prey over a kill.
“Sausage trees don’t grow in stands, so a large solitary tree provides a leopard not only with solitude but also with an expansive view of what is happening in the territory around it. Leopards will hunt from the early evening to dawn so at midday, as it was when I came across this great cat on the Maasai Mara, leopards are most likely resting. This cat was so comfortable in its perch that a group of elephants rubbing themselves on the base of the tree barely disturbed it.”

Guy Combes encountered this mbogo mkuu (chief buffalo) at a wildlife sanctuary near his home at Soysambu in Kenya. By the lake, among the reeds, is where the old buffalo bulls go when they’ve been ousted from the herd. “You sometimes see them in pairs or on their own,” says the artist, “but when they’ve been ejected from the herd they tend to be very defensive and aggressive.
“In addition to the attitude, the buffalo has evolved his fearsome horns. Buffalo are primary prey for lions and to bring down a full-grown buffalo usually takes up to three or four lionesses. To be able to fight off three or four large lions, a buffalo needs some ammunition.”

“Mwaluganje was set up primarily as an elephant sanctuary to help with the devastating poaching in and around Tsavo National Park,” says artist Guy Combes. “It has been so successful that now the sanctuary has an overpopulation problem. This river is a popular refreshment stop for substantial family groups, but this large bull came down one morning and stepped out into the sunlight, complimented perfectly by the outline of the Shimba Hills behind. At the moment I am drawn more to images of Africa that don’t necessarily conform to people’s preconceived ideas of it. Most people visit when it’s dry, but my favorite time is during and after the rains, when the greens are more vivid, the animals have more food and seem much happier as a result.”

Back in December I was told about this incredible ‘morph’ phenomenon that has not been seen for over 90 years, and that there was a pressing need to monitor and protect it while raising awareness of the species as a whole. The last one recorded was shot in Tanzania in 1921. By ‘morph’ this means a genetic colour variation, the most well known being the ‘King’ cheetah, specimens of which have only occurred in South Africa and Zimbabwe. The Mughal Emperor of India recorded having a white cheetah presented to him in 1608, saying that the spots were of a blue colour and the whiteness of the body also inclined to blue-ishness. This suggests a chinchilla mutation which restricts the amount of pigment on the hair shaft. Red cheetahs have dark tawny spots on a golden background and some desert cheetahs are very pale to be more camouflaged in their environment. There are also reported cases of melanism or albinism, but the latter does not apply to this cheetah. The only reported cases of this morph which scientists believe is a recessive gene like the king cheetah, have been in East Africa from the subspecies, acynonix jubatus raineyii.
I was hooked from the first moment I heard about this, and needless to say I immediately wanted to get reference, but the prospect of finding it seemed incredibly remote. The only hope I had was that the cheetah, a male, was still with his mother and occupying the same area before he reached the age of independence. This time was fast approaching so the need was urgent to find him. Apparently he already showed small signs of conflict with other male cheetahs trying to get to his mother who had come into season again. Here is an account of my search:
I was at home at Soysambu when I got the call that a window of time was open for me to have a vehicle and a spotter plane available to search the 100,000 acre area in which the cheetah was believed to be. That’s quite literally the equivalent of a needle in a haystack. So I made my way there with not a great deal of optimism other than I thought I would get some good background reference.
Our first search was in a plane made by the Israeli army to train pilots and coincidentally called a Cheetah: a small frame of aluminum poles and nylon fabric with a propeller and wheels. I confess to having raised anxiety levels when on small aircraft due to a couple of infamous past experiences, so I wasn’t thoroughly enthused when the pilot (despite being one of the finest in Kenya), explained that we would be doing an hour of mostly low level flying with tight turns. There were two big storms on either side and the air was being moved rapidly between them so we spent most of the flight going sideways. I gritted my teeth and tried to concentrate on searching the ground but it was pretty much a pointless exercise.
So back on the ground I set off in a landrover to search the area, most of which has no roads and at least managed to get some good background reference in the evening light. I figured that I could probably work this one with photographs someone had taken of him as a much younger cub and reference I had of adult male cheetahs. After all, he was just the same but with no spots, right? So I headed to town and met some friends for a few drinks. Then my phone rang:
- “We’ve just found him!!!”
- “did you get any pictures?”
- “no sorry didn’t have a camera”
- “ok I will be up and out there at sparrows!”.
My host was there warming up the plane and getting ready, however I suggested I trade places with someone in one of the vehicles so that at least if he was found I would be able to get some good ground shots. We set off and watched as the plane traversed from one end of the horizon to the other trying our best to follow, but silence on the radio. By mid-morning we once again had to call it off and regroup for coffee. Everyone dispersed and I caught up with some sleep. Pretty much the same thing that evening, and I was beginning to lose hope. Cheetah can cover huge distances at night but usually stay in the same area during the day, and by the following morning two nights had passed. My only hope was that because he was with his mother, that they were still occupying the same area.
Once again, eternally optimistic, my host set off in the plane with another hapless volunteer that had to take my place – I felt like such a lightweight. Turns out that I made 100% the best decision I could have. As we were thundering over the roadless plain in the landrover, I suddenly noticed that the plane had started to circle. My heart shifted into first gear. Our radio was out but the plane had unmistakably made several tight turns and was continuing to do so until we managed to get close to the circle it was making. Of course it happened to be an area covered in large rocks and low trees, so I was sitting forward in my seat, clinging to the dash with my face up against the windshield trying to keep my camera on my lap as we bounced ridiculously over huge boulders.
Then there he was. A white spot in a landscape painted gold by the morning sun. As we got closer we had to be very tactical about our speed and noise level which is pretty much impossible in a landrover, especially when you’re driving over big rocks. Lots of “ok forwards…”, “STOP” and “shhhhhhh!!!” in theatrical whisper. He let us get quite close before hunkering down and slinking off in the direction of even more vehicle-unfriendly rocks. But we managed to keep up and he didn’t seem overly anxious about us. We barely noticed that his mother was following at a distance. We were with him like this for about 30 minutes that seemed like about 5 seconds. Then having punished the vehicle to the extent that I was amazed the wheels were still on, I noticed that he began to move away from us, walking at first, then trotting, then a good run. My heart sank and I thought my last view would be him running away in fear, but it became quickly apparent that he was focusing on something. The sun was in my eyes but I could make out a dark shape moving fast in a perpendicular direction to him. Binoculars out – it was a Serval Cat!!! Next thing we knew he was running at full tilt after this thing, zigzagging first then long stretches of blindingly fast speed. Alas, we were in the worst part of the boulder field and there was clearly no option of a pursuit. So after he disappeared and the dust settled we looked at each other and let out a looooong sigh. Amazing.
I came away feeling as though I had seen Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster. And got photographs!!! This is not my first involvement with cheetahs. I’m very familiar with the species in terms of the personal friendships I have with people who work tirelessly to ensure their survival, and the subject matter I have been asked to paint. From my childhood I will never forget visiting some friends of my parents in Naivasha who had a pair of domesticated cheetah. Oblivious to their presence I ignored a well intentioned warning and took off down their garden, very quickly finding myself face down in the grass with a cheetah on my back. Fortunately my Dad, a well rehearsed rugby player, dealt with my assailant quickly and efficiently. However, at no point did I feel as though my life was in danger. It was just like being roughed up by a playful dog. So in a way I have always felt a strong connection with them, and I am now practically obsessed with this individual animal and the unforgettable experience of finding him and being allowed to spend half an hour or so with him. I hope I have done him justice on canvas.
The painting itself, aside from being the most accurate portrayal I was capable of, includes certain elements that are important to the story. The area is one that accommodates one of the highest densities of cheetah populations in East Africa. This could be as a result of a distinct lack of other larger predators that would be a threat to their existence, a large prey base, and an area relatively protected from development. I wanted to include this latter factor and have faintly suggested a settlement complete with cell phone tower on the ridge in the middle distance. This, of course, is the greatest problem that cheetahs face in our ‘human’ age. The locations is very significant here also, and the distant Ngong Hills together with the setting full moon make it very specific. The sun and moon are intentionally symbolic here too: the moon representing Artemis, the goddess of animals and forests and the sun representing Apollo, the god of arts, amongst other things. The title, “The Phantom”, suggests an elusive, mythical entity that exists somewhere between night and day.

It’s possible that this unique morph cheetah could change scientific theories on cheetah genetics, and his existence could draw further attention to a species on the brink – my principal motivation for doing this painting. For ways you can help go to Action for Cheetahs in Kenya and Athi Kapiti Conservancy.

With only several hundred animals remaining, the Rothschild Giraffe, also known as the Baringo or Ugandan Giraffe, is the second-most endangered giraffe subspecies on earth. Only a handful locations on earth can boast a Rothschild Giraffe population, including Lake Nakuru National Park in Kenya, where artist Guy Combes makes his home.
Combes’ father, artist Simon Combes, was instrumental in Lake Nakuru National Park for Rhino Rescue, which was responsible for fencing off the park to protect a newly introduced population of white and black rhinoceros.
Following in his father’s footsteps, Guy has been a part of committee action and has helped his stepmother, Kat, to continue this very important work. The results of Guy’s impressive efforts in the worlds of conservation and wildlife art were featured in the Artists for Conservation Foundation’s first annual juried exhibition. The exhibition was held at the Hiram Blauvelt Art Museum, where Guy was an Artist in Residence.

“This painting is about the promise of a partnership I believe in,” says Guy Combes. “The ranch my family is associated with in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, Soysambu, has become a nature conservancy. Wild cheetahs have not been seen at Soysambu for over 6 years, but a long-term feasibility study by the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) has been undertaken to assess the possibility of trans-locating them here from areas where their survival is threatened. Part of that plan is to set up a sanctuary on the Soysambu Conservancy with the help of Action for Cheetahs in Kenya and Project Survival's Cat Haven in California.
As you can see, Soysambu is an ideal location for the cheetah. Project Survival had commissioned me to paint their cheetah, "Tango," who came from South Africa and was raised at their fabulous Cat Haven facility outside Fresno, California. I suggested that in the spirit of the project, he be the first 'trans-location' to Soysambu. In the background is one of Soysambu’s most recognizable landmarks—a small volcano named 'The Sleeping Warrior.’”

Further information may be found on the following websites:
http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=ccf_kenya
http://www.cathaven.com/
http://soysambuconservancy.org/index.htm

The Aberdare National Park in Kenya, which ranges from 9 to 15,000 feet in elevation, is an enchanted island of montane forest on the edge of the Rift Valley. The elephants that inhabit this Eden are accustomed to their privacy since there is so much cover to protect them from the few people that visit the park. "My inspiration for 'The Creche,'says artist Guy Combes, came from a recent visit. As I approached the herd, these three females immediately huddled around their young to protect them. The Aberdare National Park is a very special place for my own family, too. It is where we regularly gather to pay our respects to my grandparents, my uncle and my father, so the family theme seemed particularly appropriate to me."

“These two paintings aren't intended to be a diptych in the sense that there is a continuum or inter-action between them,” says wildlife artist Guy Combes. “More so, I wanted to convey the essence of these formidable foes of the plains separately but 'mirroring' each other, too. The monolithic cold dark colors of the buffalo contrast with the warm energy of the lion's head and mane. There's something about the power and carriage of each animal that suggests similarities between them.”
Guy Combes was most recently featured at the Society of Animal Artists exhibition and sale in San Diego, California where his painting "Leopard Lounge" was a show favorite. He is also actively involved in efforts to prevent the Tanzanian government from building a road across the northern migration routes of the Serengeti National Park. To learn how you can help go to http://www.savetheserengeti.org