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This book showcases stunning artwork and stories of Australian animals that have been lost to extinction.
Australia is home to an incredible diversity of native animals. While Australian animals are among the most unique in the world, they are also among the most endangered, with hundreds currently on the brink of extinction. We must act quickly if we are to save these species, as once gone, they are gone forever.
Extinct is a collection of artworks from established and emerging Australian fine artists, each depicting an Australian animal that has already, for various reasons, tumbled over the edge into extinction. Extinct laments their loss, but also celebrates their former existence, diversity and significance. The stunning artworks are accompanied by stories of each animal, highlighting the importance of what we have lost, so that we appreciate what we have not lost yet.
Extinct features artworks from Sue Anderson, Brook Garru Andrew, Andrew Baines, Elizabeth Banfield, Sally Bourke, Jacob Boylan, Nadine Christensen, Simon Collins, Lottie Consalvo, Henry Curchod, Sarah Faulkner, Dianne Fogwell, David Frazer, Martin George, Bruce Goold, Eliza Gosse, Simone Griffin, Johanna Hildebrandt, Miles Howard-Wilks, Nick Howson, Brendan Huntley, Ben Jones, Alex Latham, Rosemary Lee, Amanda Marburg, Chris Mason, Terry Matassoni, Rick Matear, Eden Menta, Reg Mombassa, Tom O'Hern, Bernard Ollis, Emma Phillips, Nick Pont, Geoffrey Ricardo, Sally Robinson, Anthony Romagnano, Gwen Scott, Marina Strocchi, Jenny Watson and Allie Webb.
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Introduction
- Big-Eared Hopping Mouse
- Blue-Grey Mouse
- Bramble Cay Melomys
- Broad-Cheeked Hopping Mouse
- Broad-Faced Potoroo
- Capricorn Rabbit-Rat
- Christmas Island Pipistrelle
- Crescent Nailtail Wallaby
- Darling Downs Hopping Mouse
- Desert Bandicoot
- Desert Bettong
- Desert Rat-Kangaroo
- Dusky Flying Fox
- Eastern Hare-Wallaby
- Eungella Gastric-Brooding Frog
- Gould's Mouse
- Kangaroo Island Emu
- King Island Emu
- Lake Mackay Hare-Wallaby
- Lake Pedder Earthworm
- Lesser Bilby
- Lesser Stick-Nest Rat
- Long-Tailed Hopping Mouse
- Lord Howe Flax Snail
- Lord Howe Gerygone
- Mount Glorious Day Frog
- Nullarbor Dwarf Bettong
- Paradise Parrot
- Pig-Footed Bandicoot
- Robust White-Eye
- Sharp Snouted Day Frog
- Short-Tailed Hopping Mouse
- Southern Gastric-Brooding Frog
- Tasman Starling
- Thylacine
- Toolache Wallaby
- Tornelasmias capricorni
- White Gallinule
- White-Footed Rabbit-Rat
- A story of hope: The Mountain Pygmy-Possum and the Bogong Moth
Artist biographies
References
Index
Benjamin Gray is an ecologist and historian whose work aims to explore the ethical and emotional significance of extinction, interactions between human and non-human animals in modern society, and the serious social, economic and environmental consequences of global biodiversity loss. He is a self-taught artist and a keen follower of the Arts in Australia and internationally.
"I am devastated that I will never see a Gastric Brooding Frog give birth through her mouth or a Big Eared Hopping Mouse disappear into the distance. I will never hear the call of a Christmas Island Pipistrelle pierce the night or the roar of a Thylacinus. With whimsical portraits and sober words, Dr Benjamin Gray reminds us of what we have already lost and implores us to keep fighting for all our unique creatures – be they small, brown or hopping."
– Dr Jenny Gray, Chief Executive Officer, Zoos Victoria
"This wonderful art-science-coffee table book is a must for nature lovers, artists and scientists."
– Carol Dance, Sydney Arts Guide, 17 October 2021
"Notwithstanding the eloquence and insightfulness of the words, it is the artworks that give this book its power, pathos and beauty; its ability to move us. Each of the 39 extinct species is portrayed in a manner that gives some sense of its essence."
– John Woinarski, Historical Records of Australian Science 33(1) 2022
