Apologies 1 – 6, video, 27:10 min., 2007-9

Humans often pass by animal carcasses as they speed along highways, never bothering to give another thought to the dead animal or the fate of its remains. In Shaun Gladwell’s work, filmed in central Australia, a motorcyclist stops on deserted highways to pick up dead kangaroos killed by passing vehicles. He performs what appears to be a recurring death ritual, cleaning the carcasses of insects and debris, picking up the kangaroo bodies and moving them to the side of the road for final burial. He seems to be whispering something to the dead animals, either an apology, or remarks that might be a part of the burial rite in which he engages repetitively. What is most striking about this work is the compassion with which the human treats the animal victim, reversing behavior which we are accustomed to seeing in everyday life.