Moonshine is an intimate, nearly three-decade-long portrait of Appalachian communities in the United States. Van Manen first visited the mining regions of Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia in 1985, returning periodically up until 2013 to document the families she stayed with.
Unlike stereotypical or sensationalized portrayals of the region's poverty or "hillbilly" tropes, Van Manen's work focuses fiercely on human connection and daily life. By embedding herself with the locals (such as the Boggs family and miners like Mavis and Junior), her photography captures raw, unpretentious moments of intimacysuch as children playing on couches or a daughter combing her grandmother's hair.
The book serves as an intergenerational family album that subtly chronicles the slow demise of the local coal-mining industry and the cultural shifts within Appalachia, including the migration from traditional wooden cabins to urban trailer parks.
To convey the passage of time and the inevitability of change, Van Manen visually contrasts her earlier black-and-white photographs with her later color work. Her organic, spontaneous aesthetic eschews large cameras and clinical detachment, opting instead for a deeply empathetic and personal style.
Moonshine is an intimate, nearly three-decade-long portrait of Appalachian communities in the United States. Van Manen first visited the mining regions of Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia in 1985, returning periodically up until 2013 to document the families she stayed with.
Unlike stereotypical or sensationalized portrayals of the region's poverty or "hillbilly" tropes, Van Manen's work focuses fiercely on human connection and daily life. By embedding herself with the locals (such as the Boggs family and miners like Mavis and Junior), her photography captures raw, unpretentious moments of intimacysuch as children playing on couches or a daughter combing her grandmother's hair.
The book serves as an intergenerational family album that subtly chronicles the slow demise of the local coal-mining industry and the cultural shifts within Appalachia, including the migration from traditional wooden cabins to urban trailer parks.
To convey the passage of time and the inevitability of change, Van Manen visually contrasts her earlier black-and-white photographs with her later color work. Her organic, spontaneous aesthetic eschews large cameras and clinical detachment, opting instead for a deeply empathetic and personal style.