Mo Ganji: Asiatic Lion | Asiatischer Löwe | Panthera leo persica | No. 019/250 from work group 8/99

Asiatic Lion | Asiatischer Löwe | Panthera leo persica

In this drawing, Mo Ganji’s single line seeks the underlying presence of the Asiatic lion rather than its grandeur. By stripping away all but the essential contour, the line offers a concentrated view of the animal’s form — a gesture toward what remains when surface detail is removed. True to Ganji’s approach, the line is not a definitive representation but one possible way of approaching the lion’s essence, allowing the viewer to encounter the being without narrative or embellishment.

Panthera leo persica is listed as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. Once widespread from the Middle East to northern India, the subspecies today survives almost exclusively in and around the Gir Forest of Gujarat, India. After reaching a historic low of roughly 20 individuals in the early 20th century, the population has recovered under strict protection and now numbers several hundred animals, though it remains geographically concentrated and thus vulnerable.

Key threats include disease risks within a single, dense population; human–lion conflict at the expanding edges of the Gir landscape; habitat fragmentation; and the limited genetic diversity resulting from past bottlenecks. Conservation efforts focus on monitoring, managing human–wildlife interactions, and establishing potential secondary habitats to reduce the vulnerability of keeping the entire population in one region.

Ganji’s single-line rendering reflects none of this directly; instead, it holds space for contemplation. The reduced form acts as a quiet reminder that even iconic species contain layers of meaning beneath their visible strength, and that understanding begins when we allow the essential to emerge without distraction.