In the Zoo

Have you ever visited a zoo? Surely everyone has been to one at some point… I recently visited one, and it was the oldest zoo in the Czech Republic. I really had mixed feelings about my visit. Accustomed to large enclosures where you might catch a glimpse of the animals in the distance, if at all, here they were in small enclosures that were almost too close for comfort. For example, we could watch a sea lion swimming repeatedly under the water around us, and how little monkeys with big bottoms were dashing right in front of the glass. I was glad to have the opportunity to see them live up close, but on the other hand, I felt sorry for them. It seemed to me that the enclosures were disproportionately small for some animals, and I kept expecting that there would be a second part around the corner, an island with ropes where the monkeys could play on trees and swings, but there was nothing… We on one side of the fence, them on the other… And by those fences, the worn paths from the constant walking along the same route…

I remembered my feelings when on Monday, in the rain and cold, I took out the canvas and paints and started my first painting after summer…

Acrylic on canvas 40×40 cm