Our humanity lost when we mistreat animals, though Immanuel Kant said it better:

He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.

Leslie Ditto addresses that aspect of man’s inhumanity her second show at Copro Gallery, “Humanity Lost.” With a strong foundation in Pop Surrealism, Ditto explores our often cruel relationship with animals, both domestic and wild.

Leslie Ditto, Giraffe

Xue Wang’s work also explores criminality of another sort. Hers is a shadow world filled with the extremities of the human zoo.  In “Time Off For Good Behaviour,” Wang unveils the the impetuses of crime–pettiness, jealousy, lust, greed–with images that are both playful and pointed.

Both shows open February 23, 2013 and run though March 16th.

Xue Wang, Bonnie and Clyde

Top: Xue Wang, Fifteen Hundred in Used Notes