Meg Rumbelow

Only Animal

"The domestication of cattle did not begin as a simple prospect of milk and meat. Cattle had magical functions, sometimes oracular, sometimes sacrificial."  (John Berger, 1980)

By looking at animals with a more instinctive eye and in a magical light, I aim to rekindle the relationship between viewer and animal, questioning the way in which we view animals today.

Since the machine started to replace the function of the animal in our working lives, they have moved away from being a necessity, becoming a luxury. This has distanced and damaged our close relationship, and the value and respect we gave them - we do not walk beside animals in life anymore.

An example of this disconnection from the magical intuitive relationship with nature is in animal testing. Each of the images in Only Animal shows a specific species or breed of animal that is currently tested on in UK labs. These images are then titled with a code which is used by the Home Office to represent each of these species or breeds when in correspondence with the labs.

The photographic strategy looks at the beauty of these creatures; moving with them in their surroundings, and revealing how each animal interacts with their space and reacts to my presence, as I try to re-gain instinct. These are detailed abstract portraits that reflect the individual traits of each animal. The vivid colour adds surrealism to the images, provoking a magical aesthetic.