Probably every cat owner has encountered a scene like this on the garden path, or maybe even on the living room rug. When I came across it one morning, I immediately went for my camera and tripod. I felt slightly odd about it, but there was, after all, nothing I could do for the rabbit at that point. There is a long tradition of photographing dead subjects, and almost a genre of roadkill snapshots. Edward Weston once even photographed a dead man he happened on in the California desert. Nevertheless, presenting the result as art, for example by hanging it on a wall or in a gallery, could be considered tacky or provocative or risky. Much, of course, depends on the audience. What do you think of this picture? And is there subject matter that is unlikely to make good art?
Steve,
What a coincidence. I’ve been putting together a post with a photo of a dead mule.
I think yours is a risky photo, because it is almost humorous. The poor rabbit seems to be caught in an eternal spring. The photo tells an imaginary story of a running, hopping rabbit, and also of an unfortunate real rabbit. I can’t speak for the rabbit, but if something like this happened to me, I would be comforted to know that at least I could contribute to a beautiful photo.
Setting aside squeamishness, I find this image fascinating because of the way the rabbit is constrained to a surface, almost like a figure on a Greek vase. The texture of the fur and the texture of the pine needles make a seductive combination, if such a word could be used in this context.
What an intriguing picture with the shaggy rabbit fur against pine needles(?).
I prefer a looking at a dead rabbit killed by nature to seeing a dead rabbit lying next to other food on an elegant table a in still life that I saw in a museum.
Would I hang it on my wall? Why not? I have a little collections of finds: A dried dead frog, shed snake skins and buffalo vertebrae. I prefer these finds to antlers or stuffed turkeys that people shoot and hang on their walls.
A stunning integration of tousled fur and pine needles.
Steve,
There is something very cartoon like about your rabbit that lifts it out of the dead rabbit rut. This is speedy, the (dead) rabbit.
Your other question is entirely audience related and has to be answered in terms of taboos. Although artists like to think that they are good at challenging taboos, there are, nonetheless, ultimate taboo barriers that audiences won’t cross. Pictures of Mohammed are one obvious example. No matter how much ‘art’ it is to the creator, if the audience won’t take it, it isn’t art to them.
I don’t suppose that there are many similar subjects, simply because they have to be either culturally, or genetically, very deep seated to be true taboos, and not fashionable flimflam.
A related question might be about dealing with less deep seated taboos that make art unacceptable at a given time and place, but perfectly accpetable a generation later. Perhaps one of the more history minded contributors might comment on this.
Steve…
I echo Karl’s comment…the beautiful irony of this rabbit in sprinting stance, yet just laying there as a corpse….almost as though the rabbit is just as it should be…I love the way the texture of the fur and the texture of the pine needles (or grass?) seem to blend into one another.
As far as subject matter goes…my weak stomach and softness for all creatures furry and small says it’s not a good choice. But my photographic eye says this is a brilliant study of texture and tones, as well as the poetic irony of life and death.
Please correct me if I’m wrong in deciphering this picture. It looks as if the rabbit’s left hind foot is caught in a trap — is that right? It’s a terrible way to die, because it must take days and to me the photo shows the cruelty of traps. Animal welfare advocates could be an audience for it. I know zilch about photography, but I’m wondering if the background is pine needles or shortish grass.
Steve,
WHat a gorgeous photo. I don’t read it as cartoonish, but rather more ironic that the little guy seems to be caught in this action pose (I don’t see the trap that Mary sees). We accept pictures of lots of things that remind us of death and decay – like bones, right? This is provocative, but in a good, quiet way, not sensationalist at all. I feel a repsect for the living thing that this was in this image, adn as Karl says – it got lucky to be caught by your camera.
As far as taboo – there isn’t much more of that these days, right? When I think of provocative or taboo I think of Ofili’s elephant dung that was so misinterpreted, or “Piss Christ” (so much of taboo has to do with offending one religious belief or another), or Mapplethorpe’s whips, or Vito Acconci masturbating under a platform. I guess I feel hardened about the notion of taboo given all that has been done.
Is it tacky or is it “good” art? Those are more complicated questions. But I wouldn’t worry about this photo being overly provocative, but then again, I guess that depends on where you are showing it… It all comes back to audience…
Thanks to all for comments so far. I agree there’s an element of humor that some mentioned, but when I framed the image I was also thinking of a religious/spiritual connotation of the rabbit taking a final leap toward heaven. And just now looking at it I realized that the position is rather unnatural for a leap: the front paws are not reaching forward, but pulled back and nearly joined in a way reminiscent of prayer.
Mary,
There’s no trap, but both hind legs are somewhat chewed and distorted. (By the way, I did not do any arrangement of the rabbit or the background.) I think you were misled by a leaf and twig by the rearmost foot, which I left prominent in the final crop because they suggested a push-off point for the leap. I think that area and the textures several have mentioned come off better in a larger image; I should be able to make that available in a couple hours. The background is (dead, of course) pine needles and twigs, no grass.
A powerful image–as others have mentioned, the melding of textures and the ironically lively pose are engaging.
As for the taboo issue, I’ll have to admit that I’m pretty jaded. It would probably take a real dead rabbit in a gallery–not an impossibility these days–to offend me. There is too much formal and allegorical baggage–the rabbit as Christ figure. I’m distracted from the reality of the dead animal.
It didn’t bat an eyelash as a matter of fact if was freshly killed I would cook and eat it, I love a rabitt casserole with vegetables!
Steve, I think it’s a great image, and the tension between the tragic event and the comical pose is a big plus. There are possibly some taboos left somewhere about subject matter (they are constantly being tested) but your image falls well within many artistic and literary traditions. The pose looks less to me like a leap than like a big step.
Is Quark the name of your cat?
It seems that others have already said the things I would say about this intriguing photo, so here’s a little off topic rabbit story.
One time in the middle of a snowy winter while driving some drunk friends of mine home from a bar in the mountains, a rabbit got in front of us on the road, but since the snow banks were so high, the simple little creature tried to outrun us by running down the road ahead of us. I followed at a very slow pace. I had no interest in running over the rabbit, of course, but the damn thing would NOT get off the road. I even stopped the car and turned the headlights off to give it a chance, but no. He’d just sit there then. So I kept going.
Suddenly the rabbit stopped and laid down. Curious, I got out of the car and went to look.
The rabbit was dead.
He’d run himself to death!
I tossed him in the trunk, took him home, skinned, gutted, cut up him up, and served him for a midnight meal. Tasty.
Silly rabbit. Roads are for cars.
Rex,
That sounds like a cautionary tale, given your new year’s resolutions =)
Running oneself to death? Hey, not a bad way to go!
Rabbits do die when they feel chased really hard.
Rex…thanks for the laugh….poor little rabbit
Rex,
Interesting story… Not too sure what I would have done in that situation…
Steve,
That is a very good photograph especially since the blades of grass and the fur of the rabbit juxtapose themselves at regular intervals lending the picture a ‘non-dead art’ quality.
I am not too sure if I would react in the same way towards ‘realistically-dead art’.
Sunil
OK, I’ve put up a larger image you can reach by clicking the picture. It does show texture much better. I’m glad that this was intriguing to several; looking at it, I can see the needles do resemble like tufts of fur. The texture indeed appealed to me at the time, but I hadn’t thought of it in that way. The larger image also shows that what may have looked like an eye isn’t.
David,
Yes, Quark is my cat. His sister is Muon.
Rex,
I have a similar, very sad story about nighttime driving on a dirt road when we apparently entered a huge community of jack rabbits. I drove slower, but we were late, exhausted, and anxious to get to camping. Although they could easily go off the road, the rabbits apparently could not stop jumping in from of the car. We hit several (accidentally of course) and had to go back to make sure they were dead.
The fur looks great in the blow-up. But, the chewed up femur has now also caught my attention. I liked the picture better earlier, when I had not noticed that. If I would see another rabbit like that, I would cover the naked femur with pine needles.
Congratulations on a work of fine art. I don’t know if it serves as a general principle, but for me artistic value is related to holding power.There would appear to be life after death in the magnetic attraction that this creature projects. For sure, I’ll go back and look at it again as soon as I am done with this comment.
Meantimes I want to grapple with the force field possessed by this image. I would imagine that you emphasized the continuum of fur and ground cover. As such, you have created a blending in which the rabbit is running in place within its natural context.
The contrasts are right, the textures are right and the image resonates as a whole.
As an aside I wonder how much my reactions are influenced by cartoon depictions. Not that one sees many dead rabbits in the animated movies I attend – but there’s something about the almost human stride of the back legs contrasted with the tidy forepaws that gets to me.
Jay,
Thanks for sharing your reading of this picture. You’re right about the similarity in texture of the fur and the pine needles on the ground. I didn’t think of it while taking the shot, but noticed it while processing, though I didn’t do anything particular to emphasize it. I really like your interpretation, which could even be extended in noting that the rabbit, now dead like the fallen needles, is re-integrating with the environment, losing its separate identity. As for other rabbit depictions, I think I was reminded of children’s books like The Runaway Bunny more than cartoons.