Exposed Animal Bodies: The Photographic Observation of the Body-Space of the Anthropocene

Using Stacy Alaimo’s theoretical concept of trans-corporeality, the paper analyzes photographs of five award-winning photojournalists, capturing various sites of exposure of animal bodies in the Anthropocene. It is not only the exposed animal bodies (i.e. confined, depleted, or genetically modified animal bodies, impacted by the industrial agricultural system, climate crisis and ecological destruction) that are of interest but also the environments in which these bodies are photographed. These environments do not merely serve as backdrops but also affect animal bodies and reveal their interconnectedness with global economic, industrial, and environmental systems.