Philip Kanwischer
Inhospitably Ours
February 2 – April 7, 2019
Philip Kanwischer’s photomontages consider nuances of conservation and preservation while examining the ethical flux of human interaction with the wild.
“I have been exploring human/animal relationships photographically in my art practice for the past four years. I also worked with wild animals photographing and enacting in different encounters with foxes, wolves, caribou and bears, to name a few, observing their behaviours while being mindful of how they see me. My goal has never been to take beautiful photographs of wildlife in their natural environments; it is to construct visual commentaries through compositing realistic, probable, and problematic interactions between wildlife and humans. Using the unspoken communication I feel with wildlife to anthropomorphically advocate for their territories, I am shedding light on the philosophy of the moral status of animals and environmental politics, transitioning this dialogue into the gallery space.” – Philip Kanwischer