Kickstarter project: Dogs in cars

by Lisa on May 21, 2012

Photo: Martin Usborne

I am a big fan of Kickstarter and the fabulous projects that get a chance to be seen and funded on their site. A while back I mentioned the 1000 Pugs Kickstarter project that got funded and is underway. So when I was sent this Dogs in cars project I just had to let you know about it too!

‘Dogs in Cars’ is a series of images of dogs looking out of car windows taken by professional photographer Martin Usborne. The name of the series may sound funny but once you start to look at these wonderful photos you will be mesmerised by the beauty and sense of loneliness these pictures convey. For Martin the whole idea behind the photographs represents his struggle with depression and fears of being alone and without a voice. He says:

“I found peering into those cars and seeing the dogs inside somewhat beautiful – as if I was looking into the darkest places inside myself and seeing a face there. A silent face. But one that I recognized.”

Photos from ‘Dogs in cars’ by Martin Usborne

Martin is a huge animal lover and has his own dog Moose, a Miniature Schnauzer. He says he used dogs in his photographs as they are emotionally honest.

“They don’t hide who they are. The dog in the car is a metaphor for those raw and dare I say it – animal – parts of ourselves that we keep locked away. But the images also say something about the way we control the animals in our lives.”

For all those worried about all these dogs stuck in cars across England the images were all shot on location and the dog is placed in the car by Martin. So no dog is overheating or freezing to death while he is taking pictures of them.

Photos from ‘Dogs in cars’ by Martin Usborne

If you want to support this project then check out the Kickstarter page and see the different pledge levels available. The main aim of the project is to create a book of an extremely high quality (rich photo paper) and limit it to around 1000 copies. Martin has a publisher on-board but just needs the funds to contribute to the costs.

Check out the project’s video below (if a video does not appear below please refresh your page):

Good luck Martin, as we write this you are very close to your target!

Published on May 21, 2012