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20x25" app Acrylic on board Sold
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'Facing the Abyss' (White-cheeked Gibbon) |
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The White-cheeked, or Concolor Gibbon, is, like most great apes, extremely vulnerable to extinction. Their South East Asian homes are being destroyed at a rapid rate, and they are also endangered by War & other general human stupidity. To see these guys flying through the trees like birds is truly incredible. It's like they're running through the trees with their arms, hence their Latin name 'Hylobates', meaning 'tree walker'. The female of this species is buff, while the male is black with white cheek patches (once again: hence the name!) The concept of extinction has always bothered me. The idea that we will never see a Tasmanian Tiger or a Dodo is terrible. The idea that we are causing extinctions at a faster rate than ever in this 'enlightened' age is truly terrifying. People allow themselves the comforting thought that we wont lose creatures like these Gibbons because they are kept in zoos. But it's a false notion. A species with only 20 left in zoos is as good as extinct. Lack of genetic diversity will kill them off. Something to ponder when you buy timber products perhaps?
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