Sea Otter (Pup)
Barcelona-based photographer Yago Partal has expanded his funny photo series titled Zoo Portraits to include one of our favorite internet phenomenons: baby animals. Partal humorously arranges animal heads on fully-dressed human bodies to showcase each unique animal’s characteristics and personality types. The series includes a range of lovable subjects, from a soft, white lamb in a crisp, chef’s uniform to a professorial Tasmanian Devil in a blazer and bowtie. The clothes the animals wear reveal their other wild side.
While the clothing options are deliberate, quirky, and cute, the most striking feature of these images is that Partal has his subjects face the camera. The viewer stares back into the eyes of the animals. Eye contact increases intimacy, and it’s difficult to look away—especially when the photo subjects are so adorable. The subtitle to the series is “Become the Animal.” By noticing certain details of the animal, curiosity grows and we begin to ask questions about the animal’s life. What does it eat? Where does it live? The images are jumping off points, especially for younger people, to establish interest in facts about animals. Each portrait is accompanied with a detailed encyclopedic description about its physical appearance, its diet, its habitat, and more. So, in case you haven’t heard about animals such as the Indian Muntjac, the Bongo, or the Northern Tamandua, Zoo Portraits is the online menagerie you have been waiting for.
See the adorable portraits of baby animals below.
Pygmy Hippopotamus (Calf)
Polar Bear (Cub)
Domestic Goat (Kid)
Border Collie (Pup)
Kodiak Bear (Cub)
Aye-Aye (Baby)
White Bengal Tiger (Cub)
Silvery Marmoset (Infant)
Arctic Fox (Pup)
Tasmanian Devil (pup)
Bongo (Calf)
South American Tapir (Calf)
White Tailed Deer (Fawn)
Domestic Cat (Kitten)
Silvery Lutung (Baby)
Common Brushtail Possum (Joey)
Beagle (Pup)
Sheep (Lamb)
Indian Muntjac (Fawn)
Northern Tamandua (Pup)
African Bush Elephant (Calf)
Leopard (Cub)
Yago Partal: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Zoo Portraits: Website
via [Boing Boing]
All images via Yago Partal.