Frontier Nursing Service, Kentucky 1937

Marvin Breckinridge Patterson made this gelatin silver print, Frontier Nursing Service, Kentucky, sometime in the mid twentieth century. The limited tonal range feels documentary, but also lends the image a painterly quality, somewhere between a Whistler nocturne and a Dorothea Lange photograph. Look at the way the shingles of the roof sag and curve, echoing the soft hills in the background. The whole scene feels like it is gently collapsing in on itself. The weathered logs of the cabin are stacked with a beautiful precision, but the whole structure still feels fragile. It is a testament to the care and attention to detail that can be found even in the most remote places. This image reminds me a little of the work of Walker Evans, another photographer who documented rural life in America. But Patterson's work feels more intimate, more personal, a softer touch. Both invite us to consider the beauty and hardship of a life lived close to the land.