Political Animals

February 2014

Location: Manchester, UK

‘Political Animals’ detournes Aristotle’s famous description of the human condition, contextualising it in relation to ecological destruction, widespread extinction of biological life and the impacts of climate change as a result of human activity in the age of the Capitalocene. The capitalist notion that humanity exists in relation to ‘nature’ – as master of it and not an intrinsic part of it is having negative evolutionary implications for humanity and the myriad of species that earth’s natural systems support.

In this series, the eyes of endangered species hijack and intervene into infrastructures that are commonly associated with commercial activity; the corporate advertising space becomes a window into the eyes of animals most at risk of extinction due to a lack of coordinated political action. They are indeed political animals in a modern sense: simultaneously obscured by, yet intimately connected to the capitalist gaze.

Globally academics, scientists and campaigners are reaching consensus that we are now entering the 6th mass extinction event in earth’s history, solely as a result of human activity.

Artwork 1: Sumatran Orangutan

Artwork 2: Amur Leopard

Artwork 3: Cross River Gorilla