Project Statement:
This series gives a visual expression to an ideal in the context of a cultural paradox: our reverence for nature that we, nevertheless, exploit unceasingly.
I spend a lot of time in unspoilt places in Africa where animals have seemingly endless space to move with rhythm and grace. Here, they live in harmony, secure in their ancestral roots and habits. However, with the inexorable human expansion, the transformation of these pristine landscapes appears relentless. Yet, paradoxically, all cultures appear to revere such wildernesses.
In the hope that it prompts us to start thinking about this cultural contradiction, I have attempted to create a visual form for our reverence. I imagine a landscape invisible to the human eye but not to the camera, where time is forever suspended in a dreamlike way and where wild animals live in tranquility. And so, to start a conversation, I invite you to tiptoe – accompanied by kids if you like – with the animals in their ethereal space, feel a lyrical moment, and participate in a heavenly experience.
Artist Bio:
Anup Shah was born in Nairobi, Kenya. His childhood experiences there became the foundation for a career in wildlife photography.
Anup received the National Geographic call for his first assignment for the magazine in 2003, followed by seven more assignments.
Anup was featured in “The World’s Top Wildlife Photographers” book (Rotovision 2004) and in Horzu magazine (February 2010) as one of the five best wildlife photographers in the world. He is also one of the 10 ‘Masters’ featured in the book, “Masters of Nature Photography” (Natural History Museum, September 2013).
By now, Anup has become fascinated by fine art photography and wonders if he could hit the sweet spot between documentary and fine art photography.
The journey began with the publication of three photography driven books by the New York art publisher, Abrams. Since then, he has had solo exhibitions at Umbria World Festival, Italy; Konica-Minolta Gallery, Tokyo and Serendipity Arts Festival, Goa.
His latest project, published in book form, “The Mara,” is an attempt to have the viewer feel what it is like to be intimate with wild animals and thereby feel a primeval connection.
Anup loves wide open spaces and lives in a tiny village in the British countryside.
