EDITORS’ PICK
Creatures Great and Small
ANIMAL KINGDOM
Animal Kingdom Editors’ Pick
Following Tim Flach’s selection of winning images for our recent ANIMAL KINGDOM competition, this compilation of 20 images represents some of the other talented photographers whose work struck us and left a mark. Each a stunning image worthy of exposure and attention…
These are intended to be a conversation starter… so feel free to join the discussion on our social networks.
This month’s selection was made by Kate O’Neill. Kate is Creative Director at The Visual Loop – a company that runs exhibitions, creative workshops and artist talks for businesses, communities and organizations. Prior to that she managed the Marketing & Partnerships Department at Metro Imaging, coordinating our outreach programs, professional development talks, workshops and mentorship programs, and was Festival Manager for Brighton Photo Fringe. She is Founding Director of The Old Girls’ Club, a network supporting women across the photography industry, and is a regular speaker, reviewer and mentor for photographic events and initiatives across the UK.
BANNER IMAGE COURTESY OF ALAN YEE
www.alanyee.com / @alanyeephotographer
Editor’s comment: Nostalgic analogue colour combination with a subject matter hard to ignore. The snake being held up in the foreground defining the ethos of snake charming culture, cleverly composed to create a sense of anticipation.
IMAGE COURTESY OF CAMILLE BRIOTTET
www.camillebriottet-photography.com / @camillebriottetphotography
Editor’s comment: Beauty and viciousness clash in this scene, with muted tones setting a harmonious backdrop for these brawling beasts. A well timed shot of a dramatic yet instinctive event.
IMAGE COURTESY OF LIDIA CHAVINSKAIA
www.lidiachavinskaia.wixsite.com/photography / @lidphotography
From the series Cowscapes – “My series Cowscapes questions the place of domesticated animals in our society. They are more and more numerous to produce food for the growing humanity, but, placed in ‘above ground’ intensive breeding systems, they are less and less present in our landscapes. Here, I use the patterns offered by the dress of the world’s most industrialized cattle breed – the Holstein – to recreate surrealist landscapes.”
Editor’s comment: It’s hard to get tired of such an aesthetically pleasing image – from the crop to the playful use of shape and pattern. Additionally, the layering of the image, where the natural soft subject is set against a structured man-made background, poses the viewer with questions on our use of cattle in mass farming and agriculture.
IMAGE COURTESY OF FORREST WALKER
www.fdwalker.com / @fdwalker
Editor’s comment: Our appetite for recreating a natural scene within our urban landscapes – from zoos to amusement parks – sometimes seems to outweigh our desire to preserve our original organic surroundings. This image perfectly encapsulates our unnatural focus on fake over organic, over exaggerating the vibrancy to highlight the ways we can distract ourselves from the more pressing matters.
IMAGE COURTESY OF CARLOS A RECK
@galapagensis
“Ecuador megadiverse.”
Editor’s comment: A delightful display of nature shot in an inventive, non-typical manner. The excited movement against the dark dramatic sky exaggerates the energy of the little bird, emphasizing the exotic colours and the intensity of its daily routine.
IMAGE COURTESY OF VERONIKA TRUBNIKOVA
www.trubnikova.photo / @trubnikova_photo
“A partner is someone who is equally and mutually needed. Dogs are the human partners, even if it is a very small and unhappy dog. If we are talking about a shelter dog, it’s very important to show the image of a worthy creature in a difficult situation. Hope for changes for the better and acceptable conditions today are their necessary minimum. This series is made in a municipal shelter for over 3,000 dogs, and underlines a particular personality of every animal. Close-up shots highlight the conditions and tightness of the shelter, and surface textures help to tactilely feel what is happening. Eye-level angles of dogs and natural light show the shelter environment as it can be seen by dogs.”
Editor’s comment: A sad face tightly framed in comforting colours, accentuating the claustrophobic conditions this animal is forced to endure. For too long we have overlooked our unequal relationship with domesticated animals. This series will hopefully contribute to bringing more awareness to this deplorable issue and encourage action.
IMAGE COURTESY OF CHRISTINE JOHNSON
www.pawsforaphoto.co.uk / @pawsforaphoto.co.uk
“Omar Versus the biscuit. A Weimaraner who I used to pet sit was a fantastic model with his expressions as he ate.”
Editor’s comment: Bringing pets into the studio environment to capture a portrait isn’t an unfamiliar practice, however truly capturing their character can be another story. Not only does this image depict personality and charisma, it also highlights the skill involved in creating such an animated and particular scene.
IMAGE COURTESY OF ANGELA STRASSHEIM
www.angelastrassheim.com / @angelastrassheimphotography
Editor’s comment: Relationships come in many forms, the one between children and their family dog being a crucial one, yet usually underestimated. This portrait captures the strong bond while depicting important elements of equality, protectiveness and respect.
IMAGE COURTESY OF MARIKA RAMUNNO
www.marikaramunno.com / @marikaramunno
“This picture come from my personal relation with the world of the horse riding. I spent a lot of time with them in my childhood and so I decided to get involved in this kind of relationship with my camera: a relation that became strong through a code made by gesture, voice and gaze. It becomes a connection between human being and nature, made by respect and faith.”
Editor’s comment: A beautifully balanced picture of complimenting tones, careful composition and air of serenity. This piece echoes perfectly the sense of peace and safety some find in their relationship with animals.
IMAGE COURTESY OF ARGUS PAUL ESTABROOK
www.arguspaul.com / @arguspaul
Editor’s comment: With a style reminiscent of classic street photography, this image almost replicates a busy city scene – the black and white adding a dreamlike atmosphere, blending the lines between sentiment and accuracy within the document.
IMAGE COURTESY OF DASCHA ESSELIUS
www.dascha.nu
“In the name of science.”
Editor’s comment: This modest photograph brings reality to the forefront; animals, regardless of their size, will always be subservient to humans – for good or bad. Here depicting our scientific relationship and need to study a multitude of species, ultimately to understand our own existence. A candid reminder and relevant image for this theme.
IMAGE COURTESY OF ZAK VAN BILJON
www.zakvanbiljon.com / @zakvanbiljon
From the series Memento Mori Vivos Voco – “Poaching is the theme of my new art project. I grew up in Africa, nature is not only part of my artistic work, I feel blessed to be in the wild. Only: which wild? One poached to death?
I focus on the aesthetics of the transient, which is only possible because it is based on organic life, and in my pictures I recall the life of poached animals. I shoot them with my camera a second time in death and bring them back to life. We remember them, an image emerges in the eye of the viewer and triggers a process: remember, preserve, prevent. From the memory of the poached animal, the animal is preserved, but because it is threatened, the viewer wants to prevent senseless poaching in the future.”
Editor’s comment: The cattle skull has had a unique journey – traditionally connoting death but of recent taking on a new role as interior design trend. This overtly symbolic article is captured simply from a side on perspective, steering away from the typical forward facing profile. An uncomplicated perspective, but still a subtle reminder us of our own mortality.
IMAGE COURTESY OF CONSTANCE JAEGGI
www.constancejaeggi.com / @constancejaeggi
“I have always had a fascination with horses which in part stems from my interest in the essential role they played in the development of modern civilizations. At the heart of the relationship between horses and humans is a large paradox. At once a tool in conquests and war because of their tremendous power and capacity for speed, they remain a herd and prey animal. Through photography both inside and outside of the studio, I explore the duality of these flighty yet mighty animals, as well as their relationships with humans, in particular with women whose livelihoods still depend on these animals. Over the past year, I have been documenting Camilla Naprous of the Devil’s Horsemen with my film cameras. The Devil’s Horsemen is a leading supplier of horses and stunt men and women in the film industry and Camilla is a second generation horse master and leads the company.”
Editor’s comment: This beautifully documented scene illustrates the vulnerability, intimacy and artistry between horse and master. Taken from a slightly removed perspective, it’s image that leaves you wanting more from the story within.
IMAGE COURTESY OF MAURO SERRA LUCIA DEL PASQUA
www.behance.net/laterarte / @laterarte
””Vanity, nourished well, becomes benevolent. If hungry, it becomes malignant “- Mason Cooley. What would happen if the animals we kill to eat, to cover us, out of necessity and vanity made a revolution and became the masters of the Earth? The answer lies in Orwell. From “all animals are equal” to “all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others”. What would happen if the animals we kill to eat, to cover us, out of necessity and vanity, asked men to be like men? That men would like the idea of humanization so much that they would strip off all their trappings to saddle them with animals, which would give them so many likes on Instagram, and therefore fame. A vanity fair for everyone.”
Editor’s comment: A joyous image bringing the animal kingdom and frivolities of humanity into one colourful composition. A vibrant reimaging of role reversal amongst the species. It works well as a single piece but can very easily imagine it as part of a wider series also.
IMAGE COURTESY OF NED WALTHALL
www.nedwalthall.com / @nwalthall
From the series Herons of San Antonio – “I have been photographing these herons and egrets since 2013, when I ran into them by walking under a tree along the San Antonio River in Brackenridge Park. I am not a birder. I photograph them because of how they look, and because they are so fierce in their determination to ignore me, and everyone else among the 1.4 million people that surround them. The city of course finds them a nuisance and has a plan for “improving” Brackenridge Park that you can be sure does not include them. So when I came back to San Antonio, a hotspot in the middle of a pandemic on essential family business–I would not have come here otherwise, believe me–I worried the birds would be gone. But of course they are not. They are stronger, larger in number, spread over more trees, and the city’s attempts to dispense with them are nowhere to be seen.”
Editor’s comment: Sometimes we view animals as our saviours or escape from the society we have created, however more often than not we are placing a responsibility upon them that is unjust. The rich tones, elegance and romance of this image illustrates the beauty of the bird, celebrating the purity while carefully underlining the iconic symbolism we impose upon them.
IMAGE COURTESY OF TOMASZ KOWALSKI
@tomas.doe
Editor’s comment: This poetic image is simple yet haunting, conjuring a ghostly scene that could be found in a number of classic gothic stories. It’s strange to think how humans can see something sinister in a place where an animal can find solace and shelter.
IMAGE COURTESY OF ALESSANDRA STOCCHI
www.aleesse.com / @ale.esse.photography
Editor’s comment: This peak into the daily lives of ducks brings humour while simultaneously evoking familiarity and comfort. The urban setting, composition and perspective mimic a contemporary painting of modern daily life.
IMAGE COURTESY OF MARC RESSANG
www.marcressang.com / @marcressang
”My series deals with life, death and human spirituality related to the animal kingdom. Graveyard, India.”
Editor’s comment: This solitary dark figure in a misty graveyard conjures a sense of sadness rather than fear. A reminder of the crucial role some animals play in the life of their owners, as for some, animals can sometimes symbolise a true emblem of friendship and loyalty. But, what about the animals left behind? How do they comprehend the unexplained end of these poignant relationships?
IMAGE COURTESY OF MARCIN URBANOWICZ
@prowincjonalny_fotograf
”A flock of geese at night.”
Editor’s comment: Sound, intensity and purpose spill from every corner of this boisterous photograph. I enjoy the unusual use of flash in this image, freezing the uniformed geese amid their organised chaos.
IMAGE COURTESY OF JORG KARG
www.jorgkarg.com / @jorgkarg
”The intention behind my digital photo collages is that the beholder feels addressed immediately, without any further explanation. Therefore I use present-day visual language and techniques to combine it with long established, fundamental ideas of painting and drawing. Our subjective perception is shaped by so many instant influences these days. Modern media affects us immensely, but so does almost forgotten ideas about shapes, colors and expressions of past days. Everything builds on one another and is subconsciously present all the time. All that has to be taken into account to move the viewer and create an unexpected personal experience. If you like, an expansion of the field of collage. My own person is irrelevant in that context, what is underlined by the use of a pseudonym.”
Editor’s comment: A foreign setting for such a considerable animal; an image full of symbolism, surrealism and power. The scene forces the viewer to look again and again to inspect fact and fiction merged in this collage.
