When I was in Los Angeles last week, I visited the Museum of Jurassic Technology and was particularly blown away by the columbarium, the rooftop garden area where tons of doves can be found. It was one of the coolest places I’ve ever been, and definitely one of the most memorable experiences, standing in this beautiful courtyard with birds all around. While I was there, I thought about all the people I’ve ever known who are super freaked out by birds, especially in flight, who are terrified of birds and think they’re disgusting, and I completely can’t relate. When I saw Anjès Gesink’s series Birds Don’t Cry, I was really affected. Gesink photographs a wide variety of injured birds brought to an urban shelter. Although the photographs are all similar in style, creating a sort of typology, each bird is photographed less as a specimen and more as a unique creature, held gently in the blue-gloved hands of caregivers. The animals are so expressive, often looking curious or relaxed. Gesink’s pictures make me think of how amazing it is to be able to help animals while at the same time share intimate moments with them and look at them up-close.

From the artist’s statement: In April 2012 I began working as a volunteer at the bird shelter in Rotterdam. It was my pleasure to help birds in trouble around the city. It fascinated me that there are so many species in and around the city and it was interesting why they were brought to the shelter. In 2013 I decided to photograph the birds that came into the shelter. Every season different types of birds come in with different kinds of injuries, so I decided to photograph them for a whole year so I could make a comprehensive overview of the problems city birds have to deal with. After a year, I had photographed more than 100 birds. In each photograph, a gloved hand gently presents the bird to the camera. Whereas the blue glove stands for human care, the hand also represents the strong influence of human intervention in the city birds’ life.