It’s A Gift

Since I began my project, to create portraits of people who raise chickens in the city and suburbs, I’ve loved the reasons that people have done this.  It seems that most of us, myself included, are not very connected with the food we eat – the main connection being the act of putting it into our mouths.  In a small way, these people are acting as conduits for a re-connection with our food.  Chickens, in particular, are a lot of fun just to watch – people call it watching the Chicken Channel.  I’ll bet someone in your neighborhood is tuned to it right now.  They might even be next door!

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Nobody Here But Us Chickens

It’s happening all across the country: ordinary urbanites (and suburbanites) are raising chickens in their backyards. I knew this was something I had to photograph, when my down-the-block neighbor had a (swanky) new chicken coop delivered. When I drove by on a Saturday, I quickly parked and ran back to help them carry it into their backyard. The man who made their coop, Mario Klip, has a wonderful website with beautiful designs. My friends now have their three (grown) chickens, and one has started laying eggs already. (Fresh egg factoid: If they are not washed, the natural coating keeps them safe for weeks!) Anyways, I decided that I had to create some portraits of these people. I’ll bet that a lot of us know someone that is doing this, too. Here’s a chicken question: What is the very FIRST thing a chicken does after it scratches the ground with its foot? Let me know if you do!