Exhibition of the Sixth Extinction
By: Simine Azarnoush
6th of April 2022
“Researchers are increasingly in agreement. We live in the time of the sixth mass extinction. The last time was 66 million years ago when the dinosaurs disappeared.” This opening text can be found on the side of every photo stand on Gustav Adolfs Torg.
The Sixth Extinction is a book from 2014 by Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Kolbert. The sixth extinction theory refers to a “biological annihilation” of wildlife in recent decades. The fifth mass extinction refers to the dinosaurs extinction and the asteroid impact which wiped them out. The 6th mass extinction is said to be happening now due to the current climate crisis, and the photographic exhibition brings to light some of the endangered species in Sweden. The photography depicts birds, insects, amphibians, predators and other animals which are well on their way on becoming extinct.
While thousands of species in Sweden are endangered, the photography also depicts the species who are coming back, full force and fists swinging. The exhibition is called “Vinnare och förlorare i svensk natur” (Winners and losers in Swedish nature) and is created to shed light on the threats to animals and nature, and how it affects our wildlife.
The pessimistic but hopeful, sad yet beautiful and awe-inspiring but devastating exhibition by can be found at Gustav Adolfs Torg.
