Twenty years ago, at Lincoln Park Zoo, photographer Joel Sartore began photographing a naked mole-rat—an unremarkable rodent that became the first inhabitant of his "Photo Ark." Today, the National Geographic Society project has reached the milestone of 18 000 species, and the anniversary is marked by a portrait of the critically endangered red handfish—a tiny, grumpy-Muppet-like denizen of the seafloor off the coast of Tasmania.
Sartore photographs animals in zoos, aquariums, and sanctuaries around the world, placing them against a plain black or white background. This technique equalizes an elephant and a moth, compelling viewers to see each creature as a unique individual. The goal is not merely an archive but an attempt to awaken in people a concern for those who usually remain off-camera: lampreys, sparrows, insects living in the soil or high in the canopy.
Over two decades, Sartore has also captured those that have already passed away. Northern white rhinoceros Nabire died a week after the shoot; the frog Toughie, the last of his kind, perished in 2016. These images remind us: biodiversity is disappearing not abstractly but concretely—species by species, and each lost inhabitant takes with it a part of the complex web of life on which humans also depend.
The project was born from a personal story: when Sartore's wife fell ill with cancer, he returned home and began photographing local animals. His wife recovered, and the "Ark" continued. Today, Sartore works nearly without days off but is preparing a successor—his son Cole, who already accompanies his father on expeditions. The photographer's optimism is fueled not by numbers but by people—caretakers, scientists, and volunteers who save species on the ground every day.
The portraits of the "Photo Ark" show that even the humblest moth on a screen door or a dung beetle deserves attention. When we look an animal straight in the eye, it becomes clear that the right to exist belongs to all—from grasshoppers to orangutans. This is not just an archive of beauty but a mirror reflecting our responsibility for a planet where every species is part of a whole.
Sartore believes that if people see these creatures without the usual labels of "important" or "insignificant," they will stop fighting each other and begin protecting a shared heritage. Twenty years and 18 000 species are only halfway to the goal of 20–25 thousand, but already the archive works as a catalyst for real conservation efforts.
