ENDANGERED: Fine Art & Photography Contest 2022 Submission - Fine Art Category

Moustached guenon Cercopithecus cephus Zero Zero left this world too soon. At only a few months old he had already been orphaned captive ill and injured when he came to us at Ape Action Africa primate sanctuary in the Mefou forest of Cameroon. He was with us for four days thrilled to have all the mango leaves and attention he desired. But we could not save him. On the fourth morning he fell ill and died within a few hours and I could not be with him. A way we learn to deal with these losses is to believe their lives are better once they have arrived at the sanctuary whether it is for years or months….or even four days. This portrait is my tribute to that brave innocent soul for whom I still grieve. And that is why I painted him slipping away yet surrounded by the mango and the leaves which brought him such joy.