'TIS THE SEASON. Photographer Erinn Springer depicts life in rural Dunn County in her photography book, Dormant Season.

People often say, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Cliché as it may sound, it is often wildly true – and that’s exactly what Erinn Springer evoked with her book of photography, Dormant Season. The scenes depicted in Dormant Season speak to Springer’s experiences growing up and living in rural Dunn County.

As she was raised on the land her family had lived on for generations, Springer had to become resourceful when it came to keeping herself busy. Before discovering photography, she enjoyed writing music.

“There weren’t many attractions or activities outside of school and sports, so I created my own stimulation,” Springer said. “Cornfields became my canvas for imagination and is still a state of mind I access, regardless of where I am.”

“(Dormant Season is) a perfect melding of the museum wall and the photo roll, polished and curated but also knowing and at ease.”

The New yorker

Springer moved to New York City in 2011 to attend Parsons School of Design where she studied Communication Design, which helped her develop various ways to communicate through visual mediums. Her work has been published in many popular and well-known outlets, namely The New York Times, Adidas, and Vogue, among others.

After a family death in 2019, Springer moved back to her hometown area and began intentionally shooting photos of her daily experiences. Though Springer had taken many photos during her visits home, she said it wasn’t until that familial loss that she realized that she needed to embrace her past. Those photos are what make up Dormant Season.

Springer said she wanted people to experience the photos the way they would read a novel, which is why she decided on the book format. She sat down with her publisher and began sifting through hundreds of photos, curating a story sequence that matched the feelings of nostalgia she hoped to capture and communicate.

Erinn Springer

All of the images are in black and white, some displaying scenes such as a young boy lounging on an old couch, a woman getting acupuncture, a dairy cow grazing on a vast field, children playing in barns, and more. The photos are given with no caption or stated explanation, allowing viewers to glean whatever they want from it.

“I hope they can sense the soul of the work and feel its sincerity,” Springer said. “I do this because I love it. I care about people and love finding ways to translate their experiences into universal narratives.”

Springer also said a quote by photographer Willian Gedney perfectly sums up her process for Dormant Season: “All facts eventually lead to mystery.”

Dormant Season was released at the Los Angeles Art Book Fair in Augugust 2023 and was published and available to the public in November that year. It has received high acclaim, with The New Yorker describing it as “… a perfect melding of the museum wall and the photo roll, polished and curated but also knowing and at ease.”

Springer now splits her time between Wisconsin, Minnesota, and New York, traveling far and wide wherever her work takes her. She has created other Midwest-related work – such as her photographs for The New York Times articles “Paranormal Festivity: A Small Town Celebrates U.F.O Lore” and “A Blue Ribbon Affair” – and she doesn’t plan to stop anytime soon.

Check out Springer’s work at erinnspringer.com and on Instagram (@springerinn) and grab a copy of Dormant Season at charcoalpress.com.