Cookie and Sharon Dancing in The Back Room. Provincetown, MA, 1976

Nan Goldin is widely known for her intimate photographs of subjects drawn from the subcultures to which she belonged. The informal prints have a snapshot aesthetic, yet the artist takes care to produce images rich in colour with dramatic lighting. This photograph comes from the Cookie Portfolio. The portfolio consists of 15 photographs that document Goldin and Cookie Mueller's friendship starting in 1976 when they first met. Goldin assembled the images after Mueller's death from AIDS. While exposing a serious crisis, the series is not about AIDS but rather a narrative of their relationship. Cookie and Sharon dancing in the Back Room, Provincetown, MA depicts Mueller and her lover at a club in the city of Provincetown. Goldin herself also appears in Cookie Portfolio, which emphasizes the notion that the photographs compose a visual diary. She thusly turns a private space public with her images. Goldin's photographs have the power of an insider's view and carry a claim of authenticity.