Human beings seem to really like the idea of being special. The Earth had to be the center of the universe, their own existence had to be the desire of some superior being, and even as a local lifeform, human beings tend to consider themselves much more important than anything else. Back in his days, Aesop wrote fables, often full of this arrogance.
Here is an example, called "Prometheus and the Making of Man":
"At the bidding of Jupiter, Prometheus set about the creation of Man and the other animals. Jupiter, seeing that Mankind, the only rational creatures, were far outnumbered by the irrational beasts, bade him redress the balance by turning some of the latter into men. Prometheus did as he was bidden, and this is the reason why some people have the forms of men but the souls of beasts."
I suppose this was a way to point out ugliness in some individuals behaviour. Sure, some people out there are brutal, violent, compassionless, rude, you-name-it. Still, comparing them to animals is unfair. Many animals have subtle feelings. A few days ago, my wife saw a dead magpie in the middle of the road. While there clearly was no hope for anything, given the appearance of the poor thing, his companion kept coming back to the corpse, giving him a few peaks, then running away as another car was approaching. The sad bird kept doing that for a few hours at least. Even birds can love, can grieve.
From there, while I disagree with Aesop's fable meaning (or what I understood from it), I thought it would be funny to create an image depicting him, looking at the disaster he created. I decided that all humans should wear an animal mask: I believe we all have such legacy in our veins. So I ordered all these masks, and my wife and I had great fun wearing those for some shooting sessions!
Thanks for watching and the very kind feedback, much appreciated!
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Place: 1 out of 18 Avg (all users): 7.5676 Avg (participants): 7.4000 Avg (non-participants): 7.6296 Views since voting: 1296 Views during voting: 100 Votes: 37 Comments: 17 Favorites: 0
It's a very fine image, though I now know from your commentary that I hadn't understood what your intention was. From your explanation I can appreciation your ideas and implementation. It's wonderful to see your empathy for, and intuition about, animals and their complex, rich lives. And about their subtle feelings and emotions. It's interesting that we can broaden our "humanity" by according all creatures what is all too often claimed for ourselves alone. Thank you.
Congratulations, another amazing image.
Your introspective depth makes it even more exciting to read your thoughts.
You are not only a master photographer but a person who has depth and consideration of life and others.
Another masterpiece and some great additions to your prop cupboard. I love how your wife and yourself (and friends) are always game to participate in your magnificent creations. Congrats on a well deserved blue.
thankyou so much for your words about how this image came about .. very interesting .. and lets hope our world evolves into the belief that all animals deserve our respect and care .. and we change our behaviour accordingly ..
i cant bear the thought of what animals go thru to end up on our plates .. just for one .. which is why i'm a vegetarian ..
anyway . massive CONGRATULATIONS on the blue ..
and i agree with margaret if those low votes were an agenda thing .. if not then we are all entitled to our likes and dislikes .. and i gotta say your image was quite confronting .. !! .. which i like btw .. :)
WOW .. another very intense image ..
i had to google prometheus and the making of man .. and came away with quite a few stories .. some contradictory .. but this does represent many of the stories i read ..
of course i will be looking forward to your story .. of what you were thinking when you created this ..
often that is equal to the 'enjoyment' i get when seeing one of your images ... not only the image itself but the story and thought behind it .
btw .. i stand in awe of your skills .. not only the photography but the way you can seemlessly put disparate images together to form a unique and perfect whole .. :)
Prometheus and the Making of Man
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