Dear human,
If you’re reading this, congratulations! You made it through the late 2010’s. Though it has undoubtedly been a dubious ride, we hope our presence in your lives as loving pets, wild animals and meme providers has granted you some relief in this chaotic world.
Let’s go back in time, to 2016…
Hillary Clinton was running for president, Britain voted to leave the EU and Kylie Jenner coined it the year of “just realising stuff”; still, more sinister events lurked just beyond the horizon. The electoral college had yet to perplex the masses and your immune systems were still untainted by Coronavirus (though people kept mentioning Zika? What happened there?). We could smell the impending doom; a storm brewing, accelerating with great haste.
You began to pet us more vigorously then, first running your palm placidly down our backs, becoming more agitated with every ear scratch. Your phone went “ding!” spasmodically, terrifying us and you all at once, forcing us to hide while you scrolled through endless pages of breaking reports framed in the blood red borders of various news apps. By 2017, we had both started losing hair. Something had to be done.
Thus, Not My Animal was born. Our emancipation began quietly at first, finding our digital shelter on Instagram, growing our online connections day by day. Through an archive of portraits you humans took of us during these precarious times, a deeper sense of meaning emerged. We held a mirror up to your compulsions, urging you to see us not only as your companions, but as your compatriots! Our posts began to make you laugh, cry and question your human reality, compelled by both our faults and similarities.
Our adorable lives continue to be documented today, having gotten you through recessions and lockdowns (2020, amirite!). These countless hours spent in confinement have allowed us time to consider new breeds of entertainment, as well as their potential ethical impact and sustainability. It is our honour to present the fruits of this period of reflection, the Not My Animal: 2017-2020 Collection, a true labour of love, printed on the highest quality of ecologically responsible paper no less!
So go ahead, have a look! Gaze upon our silly mugs. It has been our pleasure navigating these past few years with you and we look forward to those yet to come. We promise to stick around, so long as you promise to keep feeding us.
Love,
YOUR Animals