The Lion, 2023. Charcoal, chalk and gesso on canvas. 170 x 200 cm.

This piece focuses on Panthera leo, the Lion, the apex predator, and the subject of thousands of years of human fascination. It has been feared, worshipped, and also hunted since our time began.

The main image is a young male Lion I photographed in South Africa years ago. He was cautious to our presence on a safari drive, everything other than the typical idea of the dominant male Lion striding towards the camera.

Surrounding the main image are twelve different drawings of artefacts, sculptures, toys, and other Lion focused objects of the subject animal from throughout history, all across the world.

I am highlighting the way this animal is and was understood in these different cultures, how it is seen and visually interpreted by people from different civilisations, worlds apart from one another.