As soon as I saw this work, Swatches, by Samantha Friend on Feature Shoot last fall, I was captivated. Photographing predominantly in New York City zoos, Friend creates abstracted vignettes of animal habitats; “whispers of an environment” that together illustrate a mysterious space different from zoos as they are generally thought of. I find it important that Friend’s pictures were made during the “off-season,” when business is slow and zoo life in the visitor’s eyes is stagnant. In the quiet moments photographed, it is clear that although zoo visitors’ interest dwindles during the fall and winter, things at the zoo essentially remain the same. This aspect of the work speaks to the fact that there are seasons to the industry of animal viewing just as to the weather; life for the animals rarely changes, while the humans coming to see them take the colder months off and return to be entertained in the spring.
From “Swatches”
Visit artist's site: samanthafriend.com
Found via: Feature Shoot
Posted April 23rd, 2015
