Kirsty Whiten

Artist Statement

There is a certain zeal in the way that humans set themselves apart from the rest of nature. To me there is just a continuation, we are animal, we have drives and instincts that always flow just under the surface of civilization. I am really interested in this line between human and beast; language, culture, and tool-making were all once held up as examples of what makes us unique, and have all been shown to exist in other animals.

Death to me is a state of non-being. All of the hopes and prayers lavished on these monkeys are the desire of the living to create meaning and continuation; just as with religion. I have none, and I am totally intrigued and touched by this need in people. My technique, the level of detail and time spent on rendering surfaces has always been a kind of reverence.

I think of these monkey relics as Darwinian saints and sacrifices, adorned with the futile beauty of trying to reach across the veil.

Kirsty Whiten’s Flickr

Kirsty Whiten on Stolen Space

Thanks to Nic Rad and Crisaris for finding this artist!