No one captures the insanity, banality, and sheer boredom of a Christian right-wing presidential primary quite like Lauren Lancaster. Debunking the highly-polished media persona of Mitt Romney and his popular supporters, expect no less than hysterical housewives, sulky boy scouts, and a blonde distractedly picking away at something between her teeth. 

Despite her former focus on nautical archaelogy and recent graduation, its no shock that Lancaster has already lensed some of the most inaccessible places on earth - Kabul, Iceland's Westfjords - for the likes of The New Yorker and Time Magazine. In her Patriots series, she accurately and adroitly captures the spectrum of an anxious, often self-conflicted, group expression.

What inspired you to take Patriots?

It was my first time covering US politics, so this edit was more of an overall reflection of my experience rather than a specific story. 

What were you trying to achieve? 

I wouldn't say it's a political statement—but perhaps a glimpse into the sometimes absurd nature of politics.

The most challenging aspect of shooting this series was? 

Press secretaries and security guards!

What are your obsessions?

 Beautiful, or terrible light, and the way it can momentarily extract something poignant from the ordinary. 

What are you working on now?

A few new projects. One of them is a collaboration with my friend Christina Moon (Director of the MA Fashion Studies Program at Parsons) on a book project about Fast Fashion and the communities working in the LA garment district. 

Thanks to Capricious Magazine, buy issue #14 here