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How Doth the Little Crocodile

How Doth the Little Crocodile is a painting and an outdoor bronze sculpture by the Mexican-born British surrealist artist Leonora Carrington. Carrington first painted the work in 1998, and the statue was cast around the same time. In 2000, it was donated to the government of Mexico City and installed in a pond in Chapultepec Park, in the Miguel Hidalgo borough. The sculpture was later relocated in 2006 to Paseo de la Reforma, in the Cuauhtémoc borough, in central Mexico City. Both works were inspired by and named after Lewis Carroll’s 1865 poem How Doth the Little Crocodile from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

How Doth the Little Crocodile sculpture with a metallic reptile head and smaller figures inside.
How Doth the Little Crocodile, a sculpture by Leonora Carrington, shown with its reptile-headed vessel form and figures inside.
August 2017 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
How Doth the Little Crocodile sculpture shaped like a reptile boat with a standing figure holding an oar.
How Doth the Little Crocodile, a surrealist sculpture showing a reptile-like boat with figures and an oar.
July 2012 © · CC0
How Doth the Little Crocodile sculpture in a stone basin with pebble ground and trees behind it
How Doth the Little Crocodile sculpture stands in a circular stone basin with pebbles, framed by trees in Mexico City.
July 2012 © · CC0
How Doth the Little Crocodile sculpture in a rocky fountain basin, with a large open-mouthed reptile figure and smaller figures behind it.
How Doth the Little Crocodile, a surrealist crocodile sculpture, shown in a fountain setting with smaller figures behind the main form.
July 2012 © · CC0
Leonora Carrington’s crocodile sculpture stands among trees with people walking nearby.
Leonora Carrington’s crocodile sculpture, installed along Paseo de la Reforma, seen on a sunny day with pedestrians passing below.
November 2008 © · CC BY 2.0

Identification

TitleHow Doth the Little Crocodile
Original title¿Cómo hace el pequeño cocodrilo?
TypePainting and outdoor bronze sculpture

Creator

ArtistLeonora Carrington
Artist nationalityBritish-born Mexican
Artist fieldSurrealist artist, mainly a painter and later a sculptor

Historical context

Date of painting1998
Date of sculpture castAround 1998
Year Carrington began sculpting1994
Number of sculptures made in one yearEight
Reason Carrington began sculptingAt the insistence of Isaac Masri, a Mexican art promoter
Related exhibitionLibertad en Bronce 2000

Materials

MaterialBronze

Technique

Model materialPaper wrapped in cloth

Physical characteristics

DimensionsCarrington reported the sculpture's length and height and weight, but the exact figures are not given in the fragment

Iconography and meaning

InspirationLewis Carroll's 1865 poem "How Doth the Little Crocodile", written for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Depicted subjectFive small crocodiles sailing on a large crocodile boat, propelled by another crocodile with an oar

Location and ownership

Donated toGovernment of Mexico City
Donation date2000
Initial installation dateMarch 2000
Initial installation siteMiddle of a pond in the second section of Chapultepec Park, Miguel Hidalgo borough, Mexico City
Relocation dateMarch 2006
Current locationA fountain at the corner of Havre Street and Paseo de la Reforma Avenue, next to Reforma 222, Cuauhtémoc borough, central Mexico City

History and restoration

Installation site preparationThe government remodeled the area, removed graffiti, and illuminated it before installation
Previous feature at installation siteA fountain whose systems never clogged
Reason for relocationParked trucks obstructed the view, and Carrington proposed a more public location
Display preferenceIsaac Masri insisted the sculpture should be placed over water because it depicts aquatic animals in an aquatic setting
Official involvedCuauhtémoc Cárdenas, then head of government of the Federal District

Significance

Unveiling recognitionCarrington was honored by the city as a "Distinguished Woman"