Atlantic Cowboy

Photographer Andrea Gjestvang journeyed to the Faroe Islands to document the impact of a shortage of women on the territory. Her project, created over 6-years, depicts the traditional man—the Atlantic Cowboy—and the geographical and social periphery he inhabits. The Faroe Islands, a territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, are located 320 kilometres north northwest of Scotland, and about halfway between Norway and Iceland. The landscape is as breath-taking as it is harsh. Fishing is the main industry of the territory and although it has modernised in many ways, it is still bound by tradition and mainly run by men. Whilst the men go to sea, the young women are drawn abroad for study or training in Copenhagen or other European cities. More than half of those who leave never return and as a result the population of 54,000 has a gender deficit of around 2000 women—the deficit is 10% among women of reproductive age.