Upon entering the Zoo, our plaza welcomes you with three works of art. Guests can find the mermaid near the parking lot and to the left of the Zoo’s entrance. The Virginia Zoo’s mermaid has always been painted to resemble a tiger, but was redone in 2012 by artist Sam Welty. More than 130 mermaid sculptures were produced for artists to decorate and businesses and community partners to “adopt” at auction. In 1999, the idea of mermaids throughout Norfolk was proposed by the late attorney and Norfolk-native Pete Decker and his wife. The sculpture was installed at the Zoo’s entrance in January 2010. The elephant was created by artist Matthew Gray Palmer and commissioned by the City of Norfolk to illustrate the inter-connectivity of nature’s largest mammal with the most delicate of creatures. Perhaps the most photographed statue at the Zoo, this life-sized elephant is made completely of more than 6,000 aluminum butterflies and is also holding a butterfly with wings shaped like elephants. The Zoo’s eight current statues and sculptures are the most photographed at the Zoo! We’ve seen tiny tots to long-lived individuals cozying up to one of our statues, which make the perfect photo-op and everlasting memento of your visit to the Zoo. We’ve seen the pictures and videos and have been wondering, what is the most photographed item at the Zoo? Is it an animal like the siamangs, rhinos, crocodiles, sloth or tigers? What about a place like the event pavilion, plaza or giraffe yard overlook? These are all great guesses, but there’s something else that beats the competition… Many of our visitors share their experiences via social media using the #VirginiaZoo, and we enjoy seeing each and every face to set foot (or wheel!) onto grounds. A zoo trip isn’t complete without a stop at one of the restaurants and gift shop, and of course snapping a few photos. A typical Zoo visitor spends their time admiring the grounds, checking out exhibits and spotting the animals. If you’re an avid Zoo fan, then you know that the Zoo is home to hundreds of animals and nestled on 53 beautifully landscaped acres.

Art of zoo