Freed lab rats
1 2018-08-29T00:48:43-07:00 Sigi Jöttkandt 4115726eb75e75e43252a5cbfc72a780d0304d7d 30986 1 Recent scientific studies have revealed that all individuality exists in all animals. For mice, social environment is a major factor in shaping this. Rachele Totaro photographs recently rescued lab rats and mice during their first moments of being freed from cages and being outdoors. The rats’ sense of joy and curiosity reminds us that humans and animals are much more biologically and socially close than we recognise. Totaro’s photography calls for an ethical reconsideration of how we treat the ‘other’, particularly through the lens of empathy and seeing nature as existing with us, not for us plain 2018-08-29T00:48:43-07:00 Sigi Jöttkandt 4115726eb75e75e43252a5cbfc72a780d0304d7dThis page is referenced by:
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2018-08-29T14:11:25-07:00
Animal Worlds: Photo essay
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Exploring the world of the 'chimera'
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2018-10-30T01:29:15-07:00
"chimera"
from the Oxford English Dictionary.an organism containing a mixture of genetically different tissues, formed by processes such as fusion of early embryos, grafting, or mutation.
A hybrid organism containing animal and non-animal cells becomes an unrecognisable beast living amongst the natural order. This new generation enables bio-medical research to advance investigations, and transform them into existence through the creation of chimeras.Photo essay
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2022-11-20T17:10:55-08:00
Empathy for the 'other'
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2022-11-20T17:10:55-08:00
Totaro’s photography casts animals in an empathetic light, displaying the commonalties in human and animal behaviours. It allows us to see nature as both the ‘other’ and as a part of us, tapping into the ethical bounds of how we treat them. When I look at this recued lab rat, I feel empathy. I feel a certain misery as I see his tired little eyes rest with relief. He rests in the crevasses of a human palm, warm and safe. I see the irony in this as it is the human palm that inserts the lethal injection at the end of the experimental day. It is the human palm that emits carbon dioxide to suffocate these creatures. The salience of this image is the rat’s face, but as I look deeper, I am drawn to its paw resting on the human’s knuckle. It is a sign of Transcorporeality, where human life overlaps with nonhuman. This gentle encounter is one of trust, empathy, and safety. The rat squeaks “thank you” while the human embraces a little tighter.
To see nature as existing with us, and not for us is a perspective I think should be normalised for humans. This connects to the previous student’s e-concept of The Sonderweb, where it explains how human and non-human beings exist in a collective space and with equal validity, dependent on one another. The rat’s comfort in this image reveals that humans and animals are behaviourally close, obfuscating any stigmas of hierarchy where animals are seen as less than humans. Photography as such is a powerful vessel for connecting with the natural world, allowing us to see and feel the interconnectedness with the nature.
Elle Andreopoulos
