A stark and shocking image of a black rhinoceros, taken down by gunshots, its horn brutally carved off by poachers, has a place of honour in the Royal B.C. MuseumB次元官网网址檚 2017 Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit.
From a composition and lighting standpoint the image is beautiful, even if photographer Brent StirtonB次元官网网址檚 subject matter makes oneB次元官网网址檚 soul cry for the wastefulness and cruelty of this practice in South Africa.
But showing the good and bad of mankindB次元官网网址檚 interaction with and viewing of wildlife is what this competition, in its 53rd year organized by the Natural History Museum in London, is all about.
B次元官网网址淭his year thereB次元官网网址檚 a very strong conservation theme,B次元官网网址� said Angela Williams, deputy CEO of the RBCM, which has the collection on loan from London. B次元官网网址淵ou think about the impact that humans have on nature and these images really bring this to the forefront.B次元官网网址�
Not all of the images are as stark as StirtonB次元官网网址檚 grand title-winning photo, entitled Memorial to a Species. There are plenty of life-affirming shots, depicting animals in everyday situations, including play.
The Good Life, which earned Dani毛l Nelson of The Netherlands the Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year grand title, inspires a grin as it shows a western lowland gorilla relaxing with a breadfruit in a Congo forest. As jury chair Lewis Blackwell notes, B次元官网网址淭he photo takes us right into the life of the young gorilla called Caco and makes us curious to understand his day.B次元官网网址�
Williams said the RBCM and patrons are excited for its return after a one-year hiatus B次元官网网址� the mammoth exhibition took up the special exhibition space last winter.
Opening at of WildlifePhotographerOfTheYear starts today!
B次元官网网址� Victoria B次元官网网址 (@VictoriaB次元官网网址)
The themes of the 2017 competition and the images on display reflect the conservation and climate change work being done on a regular basis by RBCM curators and scientists, she added.
For the past three years or so, a travelling exhibition on species at risk has seen almost all areas of the province. Williams said that material is now on the museumB次元官网网址檚 , where B次元官网网址減eople can find out a little bit more about British Columbia, our environment, the impact that weB次元官网网址檙e having on our environment and some of the species in our own backyard that are at risk.B次元官网网址�
In total, 100 winners and finalists in a variety of categories, including youth divisions, are on display at the museum now through April 2. ItB次元官网网址檚 the sixth time the RBCM has welcomed the exhibit.
For more information and museum hours, visit or call 250-356-7226.
