Cows: A Closer Look

by Paul Thoresen

Dairy cows. An integral element of rural American and notably Wisconsin heritage and identity. Yet our appreciation of these bovine beasts seldom extends beyond our knowing that they graze in fields and provide us with an array of cheeses and milk. Via the images of a photographic essay, fine art photographer Paul Thoresen explores the very essence of cows that exists beyond words. Cows are brought to light as individuals, as part of the social herd, as feminine/masculine and as tenants of the land. The viewer will venture a glimpse into their very souls seeing them as they move through space/time as spirit/myth and as visual abstraction. The subjects for this photographic study are mostly the Holsteins existing on three family farms within a mile of the author's home.

A health psychologist retired from the University of Wisconsin Medical School faculty, Paul Thoresen has been a devoted fine art photographer exhibiting his work in juried photo shows for over 30 years. He has been photographing cows for more than five decades. His cow images have been been selected to be shown in numerous juried exhibitions in the midwest and more recently at the national level. He lives with his wife in dairy farm country near Paoli, Wisconsin just outside of Madison.

136 pp. 10 1/4 x 9 inches

64 black and white and 15 color photographs

$40 Cloth

ISBN: 978-0-9815620-9-4

2011