The stunning photographs of artist Marshall Gould endeavor to tell stories that capture the decisive moment of an interesting subject while also elevating its beauty and emotional state. Though he uses modern digital equipment and software to create his works, Gould painstakingly works to maintain a technique and style that are reminiscent of the “Golden Age of Photography” which stretched from the 1930’s to the 1960’s. Residing in rural Northern California, his work explores Americana themes that deal with the rugged beauty of the western American landscape and the self-reliant perseverance of those who live there.

Gould’s main subjects in his photographs are the semi-wild horses that roam a ranch near his home. Horses were absolutely indispensable for those who moved out to populate the American west, and as such Gould sees these subjects as emblematic of humans working in harmony with nature to exist. Further, by photographing the horses in the open space where they are allowed to live a mostly free existence, Gould is also drawing attention to creatures still existing in the natural world that we as humans need to consider in light of climate change. His photographs illustrate that humans and nature do not exist independently of one another, but truly coexist.