23 July – 16 September 2018
ROYAL SOCIETY OF SCULPTORS SUMMER EXHIBITION
23 July – 16 September 2018
23 July – 16 September 2018
1 thought on “ROYAL SOCIETY OF SCULPTORS SUMMER EXHIBITION”
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23 July – 16 September 2018
23 July – 16 September 2018
Wolfpack by Christine Kowal Post
Limewood and Oil Paint
July 2018
The installation Wolfpack is about our attempts to control nature. Dogs and humans are social animals and we have lived alongside them for thousands of years and we have co-evolved with each other. They have been useful to us as working animals, protecting us as watchdogs, and herding our sheep or cows. We have also enjoyed their company and deep friendships have formed between humans and canines and they have entered into our mythologies. In recent times, in the west at least, there has been more attention paid to dogs as companions and family members in films, advertising of dog accessories, grooming, food brands etc. We tend to anthropomorphise them, and psychologists believe that when we see a creature as being more like us we often take better care of them.
Many of the dogs in Wolfpack display the attributes of human control as well as concern i.e. collars, muzzles, coats, etc. Our interventions produce many breeds as working dogs and companion animals, often with pedigrees which act as trophies for the owners, but but not all of this control is in the dogs’ best interests. Breeders with little knowledge (or interest) of genetics have bred disabilities and defects into many dogs which cause them to suffer.
However, when dogs get together they exhibit pack-behaviour inherited from their wolf ancestors. In spite our love of dogs as loyal companions, when they get the opportunity they are far more interested in their own kind. Ultimately we fail in our attempts to control nature.