Blinky: The Friendly Hen

A book dedicated to the "billions of hens sacrificed each year for our consumption," Blinky is the quintessential conceptual artwork of the 1970s. Blinky is the seriocomic brainchild of artist Jeffrey Vallance, who has taken the concept and processes of documentation to their most absurd conclusion. The "Blinky" of the title is a frozen chicken that Vallance bought at a supermarket, then eulogized and buried at a Los Angeles pet cemetery—complete with open-casket viewing and granite marker. Vallance’s straightforward narrative and simple black-and-white photos offer a striking commentary on our society, our treatment of animals, and death.