Humans have long used the ritual of carnival as a way to maintain order within their social hierarchies. For a brief moment that corresponds to the changing of the seasons, citizens are stripped of their social rank and duties and invited to come together in celebration as equals.
By temporarily dissolving the boundaries of social stratification, a unique space is allowed to form, where ordinarily unacceptable behaviour is strongly encouraged. These events, which blur the distinction between art and life, are usually marked by displays of satire, excess and the grotesque.
In Animal Affairs, the artists have created a series of oil paintings that explore myths, folklore, and fairy tales that recognise humans as part of the animal kingdom. Through the depiction of a surreal zoological carnival inhabited by a multitude of creatures, the works humorously ponder, if all hierarchies were dissolved, what would humans learn from other species?
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Exhibition text available here.