Collected Moments of Survival

There are animals that impress us at first sight, and there are animals that reveal themselves slowly over time. The Hartmann's mountain zebra belongs firmly in the second category. At first glance, a zebra appears to be one of Africa's most familiar animals. Its striking black and white stripes make it instantly recognisable, even to people who have never set foot on the continent. Yet familiarity can be deceptive. The more time one spends with Hartmann's mountain zebras, the more apparent it becomes that there is far more to them than their distinctive appearance. For me, the Hartmann's mountain zebra became a subject not because it was dramatic or rare, but because it seemed to embody something far deeper: endurance. Over many years of observing these animals in Namibia, I came to realise that their lives are shaped by an environment that offers very little in the way of comfort. Unlike many of Africa's more celebrated wildlife species, Hartmann's zebras inha...

For many years, my work unfolded through encounters with animals in the wild — moments gathered during travel, observation, and long periods of waiting. I wrote about some of these encounters, photographed many more, and slowly translated a number of them into artworks. At the time, I understood this simply as practice: moving through landscapes, noticing what revealed itself, and trying to hold those moments with care. Over time, a different understanding began to form. What I was witnessing was not only beauty, rarity, or even vulnerability, but something quieter and more constant — endurance . Animals continuing within landscapes increasingly shaped by human proximity. Movements adjusted. Timings altered. Paths remembered. Survival not as a single dramatic event, but as a continuous, attentive act. The name Collected Moments of Survival has emerged from this realisation. It is not a departure from my earlier work, but a clearer articulation of what has always been present with...