(Re)Released

(9 images)

Comprised of paintings and photographs, this series serves as a reenactment of and memorial to, one of the most bizarre media spectacles in American history in which more than 50 exotic animals who had been living in cages were released by their owner to wander the small town streets of Zainesville, Ohio before being shot by local law enforcement. Painted portraits representing each of the 49 exotic animals that were tragically killed were used to make paper lanterns in a memorial held on the one year anniversary of the initial release. These photos detail the memorial, held on a gun range outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (2 hours from Zainesville) in which these 49 lanterns were (re)released into the sky and shot down with bullets, arrows, and large drops of rain.