James and Other Apes - Hardcover

Mollison, James

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0954689402 ISBN 13: 9780954689407

Publisher: Chris Boot, 2004

Synopsis

James and Other Apes is a collection of 50 close-up portraits of gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans and bonobos. The images are so strong and the featured apes-all named, with personal histories-so human-like that the viewer calls into question the dividing-line between "man" and "animal." Photographed in sanctuaries across Africa and Asia, the apes featured are mainly victims of the trade in bush meat that threatens to cause their extinction. The work of young British image-maker James Mollison, a photographer working for the Benetton artlab "Fabrica" outside Venice, these images are a moving and powerful argument for the protection of the great apes and endorsed by world-renowned scientist and best-selling author Jane Goodall in her powerful introduction to the book.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

From Jane Goodall's Introduction:

'In 1859 Darwin shocked much of the world with his theory of evolution. Most people now accept the idea that we have evolved not from the modern great apes - chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas and orangutans - but a common ancestor: a chimp-like human-like creature who lived some six to seven million years ago. Recent research has revealed startling similarities in the structure of DNA in apes and humans. We differ from chimpanzees by only about one per cent. Chimpanzees and bonobos are closer to humans than they are to gorillas. All three African great apes show more similarities to us than to orangutans.

'In most of the places where they range, the great apes face extinction within the next ten to fifteen years if we do not act to save them. There were probably close to two million chimpanzees across Africa 100 years ago. Today there are no more than 150,000. They are declining in numbers as a result of ever-growing human populations, constantly encroaching the remaining forests, fragmenting remaining habitats, setting snares and hunting. The situation is even worse for mountain gorillas and orangutans. As wild ape numbers decrease, so the population of orphans in sanctuaries is increasing. Chimpanzees, gorillas and bonobos are being hunted, along with elephants, antelopes and myriad other species, for food - and not to feed starving people, but to satisfy a taste for 'bushmeat' among the urban elite. There is not much meat on an infant ape, so often it will be sold alive, illegally, in the market beside the cut-up body of its mother.

'James Mollison's portraits are of the orphans, confiscated from illegal traders, that make up thepopulation of at least nine seven sanctuaries in Africa and Asia. Many of them have seen their mothers killed, and sometimes butchered, in front of them. Each individual ape has his or her own tragic story of pain and trauma. Each one is different. Look into the eyes of each one of them and you will sense their unique personality.

'I hope that James and Other Apes will stimulate thinking, and help people to understand better our place in nature. For many it will be a humbling experience. We are different from other animals (as they are different from each other) but not as different as we thought.'

((c) Jane Goodall)

About the Author:

Born in 1973 in Kenya, James Mollison studied Art and Design at Oxford Brookes University and Documentary Photography at Newport School of Art and Design in the UK. He now lives in Venice, Italy. Part of the radical and influential Italian art and design workshop 'Fabrica', his work has been widely seen in publications

About this edition

• Publisher: Chris Boot
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0954689402
• ISBN 13: 9780954689407
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 112