Beverley Veasey
The work from the Natural History series depicts a domestic animal in an artificial environment. Increasingly we live in urban societies where we are detached from the natural world. The encounters with animals that we do have are often in zoos or museums. This work seeks to amplify the artificial nature of these encounters and to prompt reflection on the impact we have on other animal species and their habitats.
The title Natural History refers to the scientific study of animals and in this case refers to the public displays of animals found in natural history museums around the world. Scientists have revealed that the world could lose up to half of its species by the end of this century. It seems we are destroying habitats so rapidly, that some animals and plants are failing to regenerate. As more and more animal species continue to disappear, this work provides a space where we can reflect on the diversity of the animal world and our relationship to it. The animals in this work have been photographed in zoos, agricultural shows, museums and animals sanctuaries around Australia.
The work from the Farm World series explores the spaces constructed for farm animals found at agricultural shows around the country. In Farm Scenes #1 and #2 we are presented with painted backdrops of a rural landscape. For most of us these artificial spaces are the only way we can encounter a range of domestic animals at close proximity.
(Beverley Veasey 2007)
