Highlighting Wildlife in Crisis, ‘The New Big 5’ Celebrates the Diversity of the World’s Animal Denizens

Qiang Zhang, Golden Snub-nosed Monkey. Foping National Nature Reserve, China. Status: Endangered. All images © the photographers, from ‘The New Big 5’ by Graeme Green, published by Earth Aware Editions, shared with permission

In the Victorian era, big game hunting saw a meteoric rise in popularity, coinciding with Britain’s colonization of numerous regions in the so-called “Scramble for Africa” and the advent of more accurate firearms that galvanized a fashion for amassing “exotic” trophies. Sometimes intended for museums, specimens were often bound for private collections, and creatures that roamed the vast African continent were considered particularly attractive prizes.

Known as the Big Five, the lion, leopard, black rhinoceros, African bush elephant, and African buffalo were considered the most difficult species to hunt on foot. Today, many of these animals are vulnerable and endangered and must be protected in nature reserves in order to prevent being unlawfully hunted to extinction. In his forthcoming book The New Big 5, photographer Graeme Green wants to flip the narrative: “Shooting with a camera, not a gun.”

The New Big 5 is the culmination of a three-year project celebrating the remarkable multiplicity of Earth’s inhabitants, which also aims to raise awareness of the fragility of their existence as their habitats are increasingly threatened due to the climate crisis. In April 2020, Green asked people around the world to suggest what animals they most enjoyed seeing in photographs. More than 3,000 people voted for their favorites, and the list includes species found in Asia and North America, too: elephants, tigers, gorillas, polar bears, and lions. Family life is a particular focus, emphasizing the universally tender relationships of parents rearing their babies.

With more than a million species at risk of extinction worldwide, Green wanted the project “to focus attention on all of the world’s incredible wildlife, large and small, and the urgent need to act together globally to save these animals, our planet, and ourselves.” The book brings together more than 200 photographs by 146 photographers from around the world and contains numerous interviews and essays by some of the foremost conservationists, scientists, and activists working today.

Scheduled for release on April 4, you can pre-order a copy on Bookshop, and visit the project’s website to learn more.

 

Vicki Jauron, African Lions. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. Status: Vulnerable

Dhritiman Mukherjee, Gharial. National Chambal Sanctuary, India. Status: Critically Endangered

Hao Jiang, Polar Bear. Wapusk National Park, Manitoba, Canada. Status: Vulnerable

Aimee Jan, Green Sea Turtle. Ningaloo Marine Park, Australia. Status: Endangered

Left: Majed Alzaabi, Mountain Gorilla. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda. Status: Endangered. Right: Nili Mahendra Gudhka, Cheetah. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. Status: Vulnerable

Jenny Wong, Polar Bear. Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada. Status: Vulnerable

Karine Aigner, African Elephant. Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania. Status: Endangered

Lucas Bustamante, Spotted Torrent Frog. Santa Barbara Park, Ecuador. Status: Critically Endangered

Antonio Liebana, Iberian Lynx. Ciudad Real, Spain. Status: Endangered

David Lloyd, Black Rhinoceros. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. Status: Critically Endangered

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Through Incisive Paintings, Toni Hamel Highlights Futile and Inadequate Responses to Global Issues

“Ikebana VII (The Arrangement)” (2023), oil on canvas, 18 x 18 inches. All images © Toni Hamel, shared with permission

It may be human to err, but Toni Hamel’s characters take mistakes and futility to irrational conclusions. The artist (previously) is known for her keen wit and observations of contemporary life, which she translates into oil paintings that place folly at the center: a woman paints red stripes onto a tulip’s petals, a man gestures toward a celestial Amazon logo, and a team numbers clouds suspended in the sky.

Many of Hamel’s works comment on inadequate responses to major issues like the climate crisis and social inequities, and she often paints scenes with figures undertaking unhelpful and unrelated actions to remedy the problem. Her “Activist” paintings, for example, depict a melting arctic and figures attempting to stop the loss of life and landscape through words alone. Laced with humor and satire, Hamel considers her work a form of protest and “a reflection of my general preoccupations as an artist.”

Currently living and working in Kingston, Ontario, Hamel will have many of the pieces shown here at CK Contemporary in San Francisco in the coming weeks. You can find an archive of her works on her site and Instagram.

 

“The tally” (2023), oil on canvas, 18 x 18 inches

“To infinity and beyond” (2022), oil on canvas, 12 x 12 inches

“Ikebana VI (Final Touches)” (2023), oil on canvas, 16 x 20 inches

“Prototype I” (2019-2022), oil on canvas, 30 x 30 inches

“The Activist II (Stay)” (2022), oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches

“Ikebana V (Spring Cleaning)” (2023), oil on canvas in artist’s frame, 14 x 18 inches

“The Activist I (Last Call)” (2022), oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches

“The arrival” (2022), oil on panel, 12 x 12 inches

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A Mysterious Presence in the Forest Grapples with Change in Guldies’s Stop-Motion Animation ‘MITOSIS’

In his latest stop-motion animation, Alexander Unger, who works as Guldies (previously), presents an idiosyncratic tale set in a nighttime forest. “MITOSIS” follows the transformation of a pine cone into an anthropomorphized log, which in turn morphs into timber, crates, and an idyllic cabin in the woods. Yet an eccentric presence lurks amongst the trees that, frustrated by the changes, confronts their new neighbor and inadvertently prompt the entire cycle to begin again.

“MITOSIS” takes inspiration from the biological process by which a cell produces two identical nuclei in preparation for cell division. It took Unger one year to complete the work, which incorporates 4,425 individual photos. Find more of Guldies’s work on Instagram and YouTube.

 

All images © Guldies

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Glitzy Rotting Fruit and Rusted Automobiles by Kathleen Ryan Consider the Tensions of American Consumerism

“Deluxe” (2023), agate, jasper, serpentine, garnet, lapis lazuli, smoky quartz, quartz, labradorite, tektite, aventurine, snowflake obsidian, onyx, tiger eye, turquoise, marble, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, wood, Datsun 1200 trunk, 53 x 45 x 73.5 inches. All photos by Lance Brewer, courtesy of the artist and François Ghebaly Gallery, shared with permission

In Beachcomber, artist Kathleen Ryan (previously) continues her inquiries into consumption and the unsightly remnants of American life. The solo exhibition, on view now at François Ghebaly in Los Angeles, brings together Ryan’s latest works that explore the tension between revulsion and delight, all imbued with a quintessentially California ethos.

Skewered fruits, beach umbrellas, and automotive parts exemplify this relationship between the beautiful and the grotesque through the artist’s signature gemstone treatment. Cobwebs of glimmering quartz crystal tether one side of a rusted Dodge trunk to the other, while precious materials like agate, lapis lazuli, and turquoise become the rotting patches of otherwise supple fare. Each of the sculptures references seaside objects and nostalgic coastal travel, whether through fruit garnishes  as in “Deluxe” or the clam-shell folded Volkswagon trunks in “Generator VII.”

Created at life-size or larger, Ryan’s works question the rampant consumerism and a generalized sense of gluttony that pervades much of American sensibilities. She explores kitsch as it relates to class, evoking aspects of suburban life like backyard barbeques and the reverence of cars, road trips, and the wide expanses visible from open highways.

If you’re in Los Angeles, you can see Beachbomber through March 25. Otherwise, find more from Ryan on her site and Instagram.

 

“Generator VIII” (2023), quartz crystal, silver-plated stainless steel cable, silver crimps, steel, automotive paint, Dodge trunks, 38 x 32 x 41.5 inches

Detail of “Screwdriver” (2023), onyx, citrine, rhodonite, garnet, agate, tektite, lava rock, turquoise, aquamarine, serpentine, magnesite, amazonite, black tourmaline, jasper, prehnite, ruby in zoisite, marble, amber, labradorite, smoky quartz, quartz, acrylic, steel pins on coated polystyrene, aluminum umbrella, 68’ AMC Javelin trunk, 77 x 88 x 107 inches

Detail of “Generator VII” (2023), quartz crystal, silver-plated stainless steel cable, silver crimps, steel, Volkswagen trunks, 38 x 33 x 32 inches

“Screwdriver” (2023), onyx, citrine, rhodonite, garnet, agate, tektite, lava rock, turquoise, aquamarine, serpentine, magnesite, amazonite, black tourmaline, jasper, prehnite, ruby in zoisite, marble, amber, labradorite, smoky quartz, quartz, acrylic, steel pins on coated polystyrene, aluminum umbrella, 68’ AMC Javelin trunk, 77 x 88 x 107 inches

“Generator VII” (2023), quartz crystal, silver-plated stainless steel cable, silver crimps, steel, Volkswagen trunks, 38 x 33 x 32 inches

Detail of “Screwdriver” (2023), onyx, citrine, rhodonite, garnet, agate, tektite, lava rock, turquoise, aquamarine, serpentine, magnesite, amazonite, black tourmaline, jasper, prehnite, ruby in zoisite, marble, amber, labradorite, smoky quartz, quartz, acrylic, steel pins on coated polystyrene, aluminum umbrella, 68’ AMC Javelin trunk, 77 x 88 x 107 inches

Detail of “Screwdriver” (2023), onyx, citrine, rhodonite, garnet, agate, tektite, lava rock, turquoise, aquamarine, serpentine, magnesite, amazonite, black tourmaline, jasper, prehnite, ruby in zoisite, marble, amber, labradorite, smoky quartz, quartz, acrylic, steel pins on coated polystyrene, aluminum umbrella, 68’ AMC Javelin trunk, 77 x 88 x 107 inches

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article Glitzy Rotting Fruit and Rusted Automobiles by Kathleen Ryan Consider the Tensions of American Consumerism appeared first on Colossal.

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Jeffrey Gibson’s Ecstatically Colorful Sculptures Fuse Modernist Aesthetics and Indigenous Traditions

“My Joy My Joy My Joy” (2021), acrylic felt, polyester fiber fill, pyrite, glass beads, sea glass, vinyl sequins, white abalone shell, metal base, nylon thread, aluminum sculpture wire, and artificial sinew, 16.5 × 13.3 × 22 inches. Installation view of ‘The Body Electric’ at SITE Santa Fe, 2022. Photo by Shayla Blatchford. All images © Jeffrey Gibson, shared with permission courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York; Kavi Gupta Gallery, Chicago; Roberts Projects, Los Angeles; and Stephen Friedman Gallery, London

“The land is always speaking and has memory,” Jeffrey Gibson says, as he describes his work in an audio guide for his solo exhibition The Body Electric at SITE Santa Fe last year. “I am frustrated to see how many people continue to abuse the land, take from it, never thank the land, or care for it. Or allow it to rest. So I ask the question: Are you listening? Are we listening?”

Rooted in the myriad ways narratives are constructed and shared, Gibson’s practice incorporates a vivid palette and a multitude of materials that range from glass beads and artificial sinew to fiber fill and sea glass. Vibrant color and graphic forms outline geometric patchworks that include words of affirmation, mottos, and acknowledgments. Quilt-like compositions mingle intricate patterns with symbols and references to myth, Indigenous knowledge, literature, and queer identities.

 

“I AM A RAINBOW” (2022), found punching bag, glass beads, artificial sinew, and acrylic felt, 50 × 14.25 × 14.25 inches. Photo by Max Yawney

Throughout his childhood, Gibson moved often and spent periods in Germany, Korea, and the United States, travels that prompted him to suffuse his practice with a multicultural perspective and percolate on popular culture, identity politics, and personal experience. A member of the Chocktaw and Cherokee nations, he fuses the visual languages of Modernism and Indigenous American traditions, drawing inspiration from music, storytelling, and performance. He often incorporates song lyrics into his works or presents provocative snippets of text, like in the bead-framed painting “WHAT WE WANT IS FREE” or one of his Punching Bags titled “I AM A RAINBOW.”

In a group of figurative sculptures, some of which are life-size, Gibson blurs the boundaries between regional traditions and historical eras. He was inspired by a series of dolls from the Plains tribe region that depicted a spectrum of genders, which he encountered when he worked as a Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act assistant at Chicago’s Field Museum—NAGPRA is a congressional provision established in 1990 for federal agencies and museums to repatriate or transfer items from their collections to lineal descendants and tribes. Gibson uses these works to explore the way dolls represent the aesthetics of peoples around the world and serve as a medium of social instruction. He carefully avoids assigning the sculptures a gender, which he describes as a proposing a “future hybridity” in which identity and cultural associations are fluid.

 

“WHAT WE WANT IS FREE” (2020), acrylic on canvas, glass beads, and artificial sinew inset into wood frame, 59.75 x 69.75 inches

A series of intricately beaded bird pieces based on “whimsies” evoke small beaded objects made by Haudenosaunee peoples around the turn of the 20th century that reflect Victorian motifs like paisley or flowers applied to soft objects like boots or pin cushions. “I think they’re beautiful,” Gibson says:

…but they fell into a category of being kitsch novelty because they weren’t seen as being native enough or Victorian enough for the times they were being made in. They were on the shelf of objects that fell outside of clear, culturally-specific objects, and that’s what drew me to them. I was like, ‘Who made these? What are they?’ and I guess I felt myself reflected in them to some degree.

Central to Gibson’s work is a celebration of what he calls “outsider-ness,” collectivity, cross-pollination, kinship, and respect for each other and for the land. Described as Indigenous futurism, his practice emphasizes optimism and a focus on moving forward as he re-contextualizes versions of history that have long misrepresented or omitted Native American stories.

Find more of the artist’s work on his website, and follow updates on Instagram.

 

“THE SUN WILL BE SHINING” (2022), glass beads, citrine, bone pipe beads, nylon thread, artificial sinew, acrylic felt, fiberfill, and sculpting wire, 19 × 27 × 12 inches

Installation views of ‘The Body Electric’ at SITE Santa Fe, 2022. Photos by Shayla Blatchford. Left: “ALL I EVER WANTED ALL I EVER NEEDED,” (2019), found canvas punching bag, glass beads, plastic beads, artificial sinew, steel studs, acrylic paint, and steel chain, 85 x 20 x 20 inches. Right: “Untitled Figure 1” (2022), plastic bone pipe beads, fringe, glass beads, artificial sinew, tin cones, sea glass, acrylic felt, steel armature, and powder coat varnish, 71 × 31 × 24 inches

“SPEAKING TO THE TREES, KISSING THE GROUND” (2022), acrylic paint on canvas inset in custom frame, acrylic velvet, acrylic felt, glass beads, plastic beads, vintage pinback buttons, turquoise beads, abalone, artificial sinew, nylon thread, cotton canvas, nylon, and cotton rope, 70 x 53 x 4.625 inches. Photo by Max Yawney

“I DON’T BELONG TO YOU – YOU DON’T BELONG TO ME” (2016), glass beads, tin jingles, steel studs, and artificial sinew on acrylic felt, mounted on canvas, over wood panel, 20.5 x 24 inches each; 42 x 24 inches overall. Photo by Pete Mauney

Installation views of ‘The Body Electric’ at SITE Santa Fe, 2022, including THE LAND IS SPEAKING | ARE YOU LISTENING (2022). Photos by Shayla Blatchford

“Large Figure 2” (2022), plastic bone pipe beads, glass beads, plastic beads, artificial sinew, acrylic felt, steel armature, powder coat varnish, 74 × 27 × 15 inches

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article Jeffrey Gibson’s Ecstatically Colorful Sculptures Fuse Modernist Aesthetics and Indigenous Traditions appeared first on Colossal.

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Daniel Agdag’s Playful Rollercoaster Takes a Miniature Approach to Monumental Amusement

“Lattice” (2022), cardboard, vellum trace paper, 76.7 x 116 x 24.5 inches. All photos by Etienne Frossard, courtesy of the artist, shared with permission

Although riders aren’t able to board Daniel Agdag’s rollercoaster, the Australian artist (previously) ensures that his recreational design is structurally sound. Agdag recently completed his largest project to date, a nearly ten-foot big dipper with an elaborately cross-hatched base that mimics the rides. Created during a two-year period, “Lattice” is a miniature rendition of the monumental pastime, built from vellum and “897,560 individual hand-cut cardboard members in the truss section alone,” a component that took about eight months to complete.

The intricate sculpture, which was a commission from the New York City Department of Education, references Luna Park, a now-defunct chain that began in Coney Island before expanding to locations worldwide. “In fact, the Melbourne Luna Park still has one of the oldest wooden rollercoasters in the world, and this work was very much inspired by a wooden rollercoaster. I thought that was a nice way to link the work’s origin and its destination,” Agdag shares, noting that the “House of Mirrors” section is an ode to the Peter Wiederer Mirror Company that originally occupied the Staten Island site.

 

Now permanently housed at the Evelyn Lewis Campus—given its location on school property, there’s no public access to view the work—”Lattice” engages with the metaphor of life as a rollercoaster, perpetually moving forward through a series of twists, turns, dips, and peaks. “But this is but one metaphor,” Agdag tells Colossal, explaining that the piece also references a collective spirit. He says:

To me, the representation speaks of systems hidden within the amusement, a considered structure. Constructed of many individual stems and beams, I interpret it as the many people that need to contribute to making society not only function but thrive. The individual structural elements laced together to form a beautiful lattice of strength. Independently they carry little weight, but together they are strengthened and resilient against the forces that try to tear them down.

Agdag shares glimpses into his process and studio on Instagram, where you can follow along with his latest projects.

 

An in-progress photo of “Lattice.” Photo by Daniel Agdag

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