David Yarrow:
“I have long felt a visceral pull toward abandoned ghost towns or communities - their narrative speaks to the fragility of mankind and the constancy of evolution. In 2020, these thoughts [were] central to us all. In Amboseli, Kenya, a large tourist accommodation complex closed due to financial issues many years ago but was never demolished and simply left to ruin without access for man nor animal. Bad weather and COVID-19 accelerated the deterioration, causing the fencing to fall apart and animals to take over the facility with buffalos inside bedrooms and zebras grazing on the football pitch.
I immediately saw a huge opportunity for taking the photograph, but for the ultimate visual disconnect, we needed to wait for an elephant family to pass through main street. It finally happened after three days, at 7.30am one bright morning, with Kilimanjaro towering above the ruins. The result is an authentic, symbolic image with the powerful lead female emerging as a dominant figure. Perhaps this scene portends to what one day may come to pass - elephants would consider that to be the ultimate justice”.