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| Pound dog Billy. Gone, but not forgotten. |
Anyone
who works with animals knows the experience of tragic and senseless loss. But
artist Nick Baldas turned the devastating loss of a pound dog, Billy, into a
beautiful legacy. He spoke to SAT about how his pet project, My Human Family Rescue Dogs Find a Home,
came to be.
What is your day job?
I
am an artist, I work with community groups, councils, galleries and individuals
on project that I am passionate about.
Where did the idea for the My Human
Family Rescue Dogs Find a Home exhibition come about?
The
idea was inspired by Pound Dog Billy, I was sent his tragic story and image and
it broke my heart, he was nearly rescued from a pound, his new family were
coming to collect him but due to an IT glitch he was euthanised that night, so
when the family arrived Billy was dead. I cried and out of my sorrow the
exhibition was born - in memory of Pound Dog Billy and all other pound dogs
that need a home.
Were you surprised by the number of
entries?
No
I had no expectations, I would have been happy with 1, 2, 10, 100 entries, the
main thing was that we were doing something important for abandoned and
neglected dogs. Creating a new opportunity to celebrate the beauty of these
dogs and make some noise - BIG WOOFS
How many exhibitions have you had
now?
Gee,
we have shown in 3 parliament Houses - NSW. QWLD & VIC. 2 galleries. Pine
Street Gallery (City of Sydney) and the Margot Hardy Gallery (University of
Western Sydney) and 1 library - Campsie Library. So I count 6 showings.
What is it about these images that
touches people?
I
think it’s the stories, people love the images because the dogs and families in
them are cute, but I think people are really touched by the stories. Most start
in really tragic places and end up in LOVE. I think people are surprised at the
horror some of these dogs have been through. They are then rescued and loved. I
also think the exhibition is successful because we focus on the LOVE, we keep
positive.
This exhibition can save lives: how?
I
hope the exhibition can save lives through open and honest sharing of photos
and stories via social media and via holding the exhibitions in high profile
venues, which hopefully will gain the exhibition free editorial. I hope it will
stop people buying from breeders and pet shops and visit a pound for their next
dog.
Have you always been a dog person or
was there a transformative moment?
I
was never allowed to have a dog when I was young, so when I turned 30 I drove
out to the RSPCA in Yagoona to find my first dog. Her name was Daisy and she
was a white staffy cross puppy.
Daisy
passed away 2 years ago - old age, she was 16, she was a great dog and I still
miss her every day. Yes I have always been a dog person.
My
transformative moments and a blessing to my life is to have been able to share
it with Daisy. I was very lucky to have found her. RIP Daisy.
Do you live with any non-human
companions?
Not
at the moment, my partner and I have decided to travel for 1 year so we can't
adopt a new non-human companion until we return. When we return I intend to
adopt 2 dogs and a cat. All from rescue shelters.
How do you think we can make the
world better for companion animals?
I
honestly don't know, humans and not very nice to each other and we can
communicate. We have to try, we have to use our voices, stories and photos for
our companion animals. Through LOVE create understanding.
Thanks Nick. To keep up with My Human
Family click here.
