Respecting the artist’s original intentions and her desire to “keep it real”, I have refrained from color correcting, cropping, or altering in any way the following set of avant-guard “holiday” photographs. Aggressive and unsettling, they speak of the dark secrets that our souls refuse to acknowledge. And of the normalcy we have foolishly convinced ourselves that we maintain. Taken this Christmas amidst the vast hedgeless fields of the fens in Cambridgeshire, England, I present to you the photographic debut of the stoically brilliant Emily Z.

All of the photos in this collection were taken solely by the artist, often unbeknownst to the subjects. Created during a very dark and introspective period of her life, Emily’s magnum opus may be viewed in its breath-taking entirety by clicking on either of the following links:

The awesome full-screen slideshow
The more modest contact sheet view

And here is a special treat for all of you die-hard fans out there. An intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the master at work. A chilling look at a troubled youth (27 months) and how she would stop at nothing to capture the essence of her personal Moby Dick.