subscribe 0330 333 1113 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I 21 March 2020 23
Jeremiah introduced me to some
inspiring old cowboys whose homes
were overflowing with Western
artefacts. I then set off on my own
four-year pilgrimage criss-crossing
the cowboy states of Nevada,
Arizona, Utah, Texas, New Mexico
and Wyoming to capture America’s
21st century cowboys. I’d always
had a fascination with cowboy
culture and the American dream,
but this solidified it for me. I could
have easily continued
photographing this project forever.’
The photographs in Dead Eagle
Tr a i l ooze information: there are
guns, hats, boots, skulls, crucifixes,
spurs, living animals, stuffed
animals, animal skins, horns and a
surf board. And they’re chock-full of
characters: there’s a Chuck, Ron,
Bill, Ed, Bobby, Kim, Dave, Gary,
Gave, Jake, Bud, Ted and Herman.
The names are short and the
portraits are sumptuous. The Wista
4x5 mahogany film camera with
standard 90mm lens that took
them, gorgeous.
The Wista was also deployed to
shoot Jane’s second book, Precious
(Schilt 2013), a collection of
intimate nude portraits of working
girls in brothels across Nevada, the
only state in America where
prostitution is legal. ‘I’d never
photographed a nude before and itwasn’t intentional,’ she says,
handing me a rose pink mug of
Sainsbury’s bought, Colombian
blend coffee, along with a slightly
soft ginger biscuit. ‘I could have
photographed them at home but
they would have looked like a
housewife. Wearing their work
clothes they would have looked like
a prostitute. By photographing
them nude in the brothels, you see
the woman behind the facade.’
Many were uncomfortable taking
off their clothes for the camera and
very body conscious. On a tight
budget, Jane was permitted to stay
in some of the brothels. This
contributed to her bond withAbove: Shiprock,
New Mexico