Magnum Photos Blog

Beasts 

October 7, 2013 
by Magnum Photographers 
Very early, photography has captured this theme. In the 19th century, the animal was firstly photographed as a subject of scientific study. Gradually, the photographer proposed a more personal interpretation. Simultaneously, the animal took on a more important role in man’s social and economic life; becoming domesticated, consumed, protected, hunted, it is ever-present in our daily lives. This confrontation generates questions apparent in contemporary works. Artists no longer seek to analyse the animal as in the past but rather the relationship it has within our society, revealing this particular phenomenon as the projection of man on animal. We cast our regard, our interpretations, desires, fantasies, but also our concerns, betrayals, our violence, our weakness on the animal. It is the most accurate portrait of the man as it asks unanswered questions. The photographs in this exhibition are mostly narratives, be it melancholic, strange, disturbing or humorous, they int errogate man's existence in relation to the world.