‘Lion: Pride Before The Fall’ presents an array of poignant, thought-provoking images, celebrating the lifecycle of the lion in all its raw beauty but with a clear, vital message – join the fight to protect the last remaining wild African lions, or risk losing them forever. With fewer than 20,000 lions left, the time to act is now if we are to secure a future for Africa’s most iconic species.
This large format, 176-page hardback coffee table book will feature a captivating collection of wild lion photography, as well as a dedicated conceptual art section representing the real threats that lions still face.
The foreword will be written by Born Free founder and actress, Virginia McKenna OBE. She said: “No one, in my view, more strikingly has caught the multiple dimensions of lions’ behaviour and depth of character than George Logan. He has an unfailing sensitivity and admiration for the individual animal. This, for me, shines through each page of the book and is deeply moving in so many ways.”
Sales of the book will raise vital funds for international wildlife charity Born Free. George hopes to raise £50,000 worth of pledges on Kickstarter to pay for the initial print run, production costs and distribution.
If successful, proceeds from the sale of the books will support Born Free’s Last Lions of Meru conservation programme in Kenya, which works to protect and increase the lion population, which currently stands at just 60-80 lions. The charity aims to increase monitoring and population tracking, as well as expanding conservation work across the Meru Conservation Area, and rekindling the entire ecosystem so other species can flourish once more1.
Specific projects that will be supported by George’s book include: providing solar panels on ranger outposts to enable radio communications; installing camera traps to identify new lion populations in Kora National Park; providing specialist computer equipment for Born Free staff which will enable them to survey, track and record field data; and supplying vetronic lion collars for the conservation team to monitor lion behaviours and the proximity of local communities to mitigate human-wildlife conflict.
Kickstarter pledges start from just £20 with campaign bolt-on incentives from Born Free and George Logan, including animal adoptions, signed Ltd edition prints, photographic mentoring with George, and even a trip to Meru National Park in Kenya to see Born Free’s projects in person.
George Logan said: “All proceeds from this book will raise vital funds to support, protect and help re-establish the Last Lions of Meru in Kenya. It’s difficult to articulate the depths of what we stand to lose, but I hope that through this book, the lions will help tell that story. This work, the culmination of over 10 years following and photographing Africa’s lion prides, brings their dramatic narrative to life in all its natural beauty and raw ferocity.
“Uniquely for a wildlife book, we’ve collaborated with some of the best creative minds at London’s top agencies, to produce powerful imagery which confronts and highlights the dangers that the last remaining lions still face, such as habitat-loss, canned hunting, trophy hunting, human-wildlife conflict and the real possibility of extinction. These images will spearhead campaigns to raise awareness and accompany the book launch. If you share my passion, please join us and help safeguard a future for Meru’s wild lions.”
For more information or to support the Kickstarter campaign please visit https://kickstarter.com/projects/pride-before-fall/lion-pride-before-the-fall
The fundraising campaign will run until Friday 14th August 2020. If the target is reached the book will be published and available from November 2020.
