On the Farm: Heritage and Heralded Animal Breeds in Portraits and Stories

Product Description

A collection of moving and soulful portraits of beloved farm animals, alongside surprising facts, entertaining anecdotes, and captivating histories of these heritage breeds on American farms.

“The beauty and breadth of heritage animal breeds is on full display in this delightful and gorgeous book.”—Isabella Rossellini, actress and author of My Chickens and I

Animal lovers, homesteaders, eco-conscious consumers, and fans of beautiful photography alike will cherish the charm of 
On the Farm’s stunning portraits and stories. With over 150 photographs, renowned animal photographer Aliza Eliazarov invites us to take a closer look at the animal breeds taking center stage in the regenerative farming movement. 

Along with fun facts about the domesticated animals who have shaped and changed our world—goats, sheep, cows, horses, donkeys, llamas, alpacas, pigs, chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese, and farm dogs—
On the Farm features sometimes quirky, sometimes harrowing personal tales of amazing animals. Meet Bilbo, the donkey in love with truck tires; Kurt, the diminutive Angora goat with a miraculous birth story;and Princess Peppermint, an anxious pig with a taste for cocktails. The focus on rare and heritage breeds will enlighten and inform you about the astonishing variety of livestock and poultry, as well as the impact that the loss of this biodiversity is having on global food security.

Equal parts fine art and field guide, shot entirely on location at small farms and homesteads, 
On the Farm delivers us to the pastoral with an enjoyable meditation on the animals that civilization has grown alongside.

Review

“Aliza Eliazarov is to farm animals what Richard Avedon was to fashion—the absolute, genre-defining best of all time. If that sounds like hyperbole to you, open this book. The proof is in the pictures: of a pig laughing, a baby lamb taking its first steps, a Modern Game cockerel puffing out his chest, a literal horse’s ass. Tender, humorous, and heartbreakingly human, Eliazarov’s photographs serve as a welcome reminder that we brash bi-peds are but animals, too.”
—Sarah Gray Miller, former editor-in-chief of Modern Farmer and current editor-in-chief of Saveur

“Industrial agriculture has commodified animals raised for food, causing untold suffering and a staggering loss of genetic diversity. Most of us now exist so far from the farm that we don’t know the whimsical mischief in a goat’s eye, the poignancy of a cow’s presence, or the pert opinions of chickens. Aliza’s incisive photographs capture not only the quirky, comedic characters of farm animals, but also their dignity and profound value as individuals.”
—Daisy Freund, senior director of farm animal welfare at ASPCA 

About the Author

Photographer
Aliza Eliazarov’s passionate exploration of food issues, farming, and animals has led to numerous projects, exhibitions, and publications including in the 
Atlantic, Washington Post, Saveur, and 
Food & Wine. Aliza is best known for shooting the award-winning cover stories for 
Modern Farmer magazine. Her talent for connecting with seemingly common farm animals in uncommon ways is revealed in her moving portraiture. She’s as happy as a pig in poop (while in fact lying in it) looking through her lens and falling in love with every duck, donkey, and goat she meets.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

How I Got to the Farm

Sitting on the barn floor, surrounded by dust and hay, I test the strobe lights and scan the backdrop. Within the past hour, the old barn has been transformed into a photo studio. Tractors and hay bales have been moved aside to make way for cameras and light stands. A formal studio set in a rustic barn may seem out of place, but it feels just right to me. There is no place I’d rather be.

The farmer, Faith, enters with my first subject, using treats to guide A Cappella the alpaca until she’s in front of the backdrop. I focus the lens on my subject, and I wai