Merging with nature

It is interesting for me to shoot animals, this is where I feel my destiny, – Gregory Colbert admits. “I had an Indian nanny as a child. As you know, in the culture of its people, there are very special relations between a person and the living world around him. In this sense, I only try to follow the ancient traditions of perceiving nature as a single harmonious whole. I, a person, become an individual only when I live, breathe and create in unison with the entire planet, when I realize that in me (as in any other living being), as in a drop of water, features of various biological species are collected. Animals for me are an endless universe, full of mysteries that cannot be answered with words – they can only be displayed on film or paper, in dynamics or statics.

I believe that life and fate are generous and supportive to me, and I never tire of thanking my guardian elephants for this. Wherever I go, wherever I photograph, I invariably assign the main role in shooting to the animal itself with its unique poetics and grace. This is probably why these pictures sound true. Those who find it easier to consider them artificial, staged, are simply afraid to leave their positions of self-defense and open up to the world. Today, Western man is so far from such a perception of nature, so immersed in the reality imposed on him by television and mass culture, that he is often simply unable to break out of it.

The best reward for a dreamer is when his dream becomes the property of many. I remember one day a well-known Indian architect came to see my wandering museum* – leaving, he backed away. I asked him why he was doing this, and the answer was: “You can’t turn your back on the temple.” The time has come for mankind to reconsider its relationship with nature. The passions flaring up today around the problems of ecology and environmental protection are obviously not enough. First of all, the hearts of the people must change. I will be glad if this project of mine will help them with this.”

* Traveling exhibition of Gregory Colbert’s work, http://www.ashesandsnow.org

“Invitation to Meditation”

Opinion of Christophe Faure

“These photographs move us so much because they literally exude a sense of security. They exude peace and serenity. They refer us to the essence of life as such, in all its forms and manifestations, be it a person, a plant or an animal. Due to our biological nature, we humans are physically weak and vulnerable, but in these pictures wild animals, dangerous and aggressive by definition, are full of goodness and goodwill towards us. Beast and man here merge into one – both of them carry a spark of being in themselves, as if they were different hypostases of one essence. These photographs help to overcome barriers between species, races, cultures. It seems that the heroes captured by the photographer have reached enlightenment and discovered some special, new dimension within themselves. Their closed eyes serve as a symbol of the highest inner clarity, peace, alien to the intellect and outside it. These photographs show us the way: they invite us to meditation, to detachment from the outside world, liberation from the hustle and bustle. They assert our right to be vulnerable, give us the opportunity to let go of wariness, to let go of fears and forebodings, in order to find our true place in the world around us. The message that the artist is trying to convey to each of us with his works can be formulated as follows: “Stop! At least for a moment, stop the pursuit of strength, power, knowledge, success and feel the energy of life – inspiring and filling our entire existence with meaning. At least, these are the images and emotions that were born in my heart when I saw the photographs of Gregory Colbert.