Hainan Gibbon

Description

In this work from The Fading Broadcast series, the Hainan gibbon is portrayed as an investigation officer, documenting the reality of its own fading world. The Hainan gibbon is the rarest primate in the world, with fewer than 50 individuals surviving in the wild. Armed with a vintage camera, exposed film rolls, and a phone call placed from within the forest, the gibbon attempts to report the truth to humankind. The outdated tools emphasize delayed communication and overlooked evidence, while the act of investigation suggests that the crisis is real, recorded, and undeniable. This painting reveals the bleakness of the gibbon’s survival and the shrinking forests it inhabits, transforming the animal into both witness and messenger urgently calling for attention, accountability, and immediate help before the evidence becomes all that remains.