Photographer plays with celebrity to show that a dog's life can be a bitch

Sally Anderson's plight in finding a new home for Hong Kong Dog Rescue has put homeless pets in the news again. Madhouse Contemporary gallery's founder Shin Wong is also raising the issue in a new exhibition called Woof. Troubled by the death of a friend's puppy, she co-wrote a song with DJ Jan Lamb Hoi-fung and has invited a group of artists to explore the theme of animal rights.

'I did this exhibition because I was very angry about the abuse of a lot of harmless animals in Hong Kong,' the curator said. 'I went through an episode last year where bad pet traders were selling sick dogs to people. This is a really big issue because a lot of owners don't want to spend money to cure them so they throw them out on the street.'

Photographer Dan Pak (above) is one of the four artists involved (the others are Wang Qingsong, Wing Shya and Young Kim), but he didn't just want to take pictures of vulnerable and neglected dogs. His series of images, called Fame's A Bitch, features an unnamed star in a sexy bikini and costume dog head, poking fun at society's superficial obsession. 'I wanted to do a commentary about the way our culture is fascinated with things that really don't matter. The idea behind the dog head was that I wanted to use somebody that was famous, but not say or show who it was. The person is a celebrity here who loves dogs.'

The exhibition at the gallery in Kau U Fong lane continues until May 8, with proceeds from sales going to the Hong Kong Companion Animal Federation.