Jean Mills and Carol Eichelberger, no. 1 1993

Nancy Andrews made this photograph, ‘Jean Mills and Carol Eichelberger, no. 1’, date unknown, but probably in the 90’s, on photographic paper. It’s a grayscale image, meaning values are key to the composition. There’s a softness to the contrast, which flattens the space, making the chickens feel more like an invading army than barnyard fowl. Their black feathers are like aggressive brushstrokes, broken only by the gentle touch of the two women’s hands. I love how the women recede into the distance, almost fading from view. It’s as if the chickens are devouring them! Think of photographers like Lisette Model and Diane Arbus, how they celebrated the everyday, and found poetry in the real. There’s a rawness here, an ambiguity, it’s more like a feeling than a clear narrative. That’s what makes it so good.