Mickal Adler

photograph by Eliza Jouin

Interview by Zoe Sottile

What do you feel can be captured by an image of an exterior or interior that cannot be captured by an image of a human subject?

In one sense it’s really fun to take pictures of people because your camera becomes the means of interacting with them, and they’re aware of that. With things, they can’t change because you’re taking a picture. So it becomes less about the experience of being photographed and more active on the photographer’s part.

In New Orleans, especially in the summer, you don’t stay outside if at all possible. The only people who are outside are people who absolutely have to be. So you get that suburban feel all over New Orleans because no one really walks, so the streets are empty of people. There are lots of cars, and the streets are very active, but it still feels empty. In my pictures there are dogs and cats, but not people. There’s one where the dog’s on the porch, and the door’s open, and you have to assume that people are inside, because why else is the door open?

I feel like in those pictures you can tell how hot it was by looking at them, and that’s what I wanted to convey: the actual experience of being outside and being alone and noticing little things. By not having anything to focus on, in terms of subjects in the pictures, you look for the little things.