There are many studies pertaining to the rate of extinction we are currently experiencing on Earth. It is very clearly a number that is hard to nail down, but I have seen estimates of 24 species a day or even as high as 150 species a day. No matter what, I think we can all agree that the number is significant and definitely much too high for my liking. So many subjects these days are extremely divisive and therefore meaningful conversation is difficult to achieve. The loss of entire species seems to be something that we as a species all agree is a bad thing. The more we industrialize and take advantage of the planet, the more we will lose these unique and beautiful creatures.
Just about everyone loves animals so in this work I try to illustrate the beauty of them by recreating them out of man made and mass produced items. It is a reminder that once they have gone extinct we will never be able to bring them back in any meaningful way. We will have effectively traded something we love for something we literally dispose of after one use in many cases. To me that trade is not worth it and I hope this work brings that thought to the forefront of the viewers mind.
