Mo Ganji: Long-nosed Monkey | Langnasenaffe | Nasalis larvatus | No. 120/250 from work group 8/99

Mo Ganji’s single line engages the Long-nosed monkey — a large arboreal primate adapted to riverine forests, mangroves and coastal swamps — by allowing its essential coherence to come forward without emphasis on peculiarity or visual distinction. The continuous line gathers a concentrated presence, enough to suggest a being while remaining open to meanings beyond the category of “monkey.” In this distillation of the core, form appears before feature or familiarity defines it.

Nasalis larvatus is listed as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. Endemic to the island of Borneo, the species depends on lowland forests closely tied to rivers and wetlands. Its populations have declined sharply as these habitats have been extensively cleared and fragmented over recent decades.

The principal threats include large-scale deforestation for agriculture and oil palm plantations, drainage and degradation of wetlands, and increasing human disturbance along river systems. Because proboscis monkeys rely on connected riparian corridors for movement, feeding and social structure, habitat fragmentation severely limits their capacity to adapt. Loss of coastal and mangrove forests further constrains survival.

Ganji’s single line opens a space in which the monkey can be encountered beyond novelty or recognizability. It invites attention to a presence shaped by water, canopy and continuity, quietly reminding us that landscapes humans reshape most rapidly are often those that sustain the most finely tuned lives — and that recognizing ourselves as part of the same ecological fabric is inseparable from allowing such beings to endure.