Handsome One, Thoroughbred Horse, Age 33
To confront and help deal with her fear of old age, Philadelphia-based photographer Isa Leshko started an intimate photo series, in which she captures various farm and domestic animals in the final stages of their lives.
Titled ‘Elderly Animals’, she started the thought-provoking project after her own mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Describing the experience, Leshko said it had a “profound impact” on her life and it forced her to confront her own mortality.
“I am creating these photographs in order to take an unflinching look at aging and mortality,” she said. “My maternal grandmother had dementia during her later years, and now my mom has it. I am scared of developing Alzheimer’s disease and I get nervous whenever I lose my keys or forget a person’s name. Photographing geriatric animals enables me to immerse myself in my fear of growing old. I have come to realize that these images are self-portraits. Or at the very least, they are manifestations of my fears and hopes about what I will be like when I am old.”
Besides confronting her fears, she also hopes that her images will “inspire greater empathy towards animals”, especially towards farm animals. “By depicting the beauty and dignity of these creatures in their later years, I want to encourage people to question and challenge the way farm animals are currently treated.”
Check out her thought-provoking photo series below:
Finn Sheep, Age 12
Blue, Australian Kelpie, Age 19
Rooster, Age Unknown
Pumpkin, Morgan Arabian Horse, Age 28
Ash, Domestic White Turkey, Age 8
Ash, Domestic White Turkey, Age 8
Teresa, Yorkshire Pig, Age 13
Kelly, Irish Wolfhound, Age 11
Bobby, White Domestic Duck, Age 11
Blue, Australian Kelpie, Age 19
Phyllis, Southdown Sheep, Age 13
Red, Chow Mix, Age 14+
Violet, Potbellied Pig, Age 12
Abe, Alpine Goat, Age 21
Embden Goose, Age 28
Kiri, Great Plains Wolf, Age 17
[via Bored Panda and Isa Leshko]