Bill Owens
Born in San Jose, California, at the tail end of the Depression years, the young Bill Owens witnessed the creation of suburbia in the 'Sunshine State'. Aware that he was in the midst of a social phenomenon, Owens began to photograph this latest wave of settlers in the West. Without cynicism, he used his camera to record the developing suburban environment, and to study the idiosyncratic interior decoration, optimistic occupants, and their social gatherings. Frank and uncontrived, this collection of images avoids cliches to offer an insightful study of fledgling American dreams in the 70s.
Retrospectively, Owens was the right man in the right place, several factors in his life contributing to the conception of the 'Suburbia' photographic project. Raised on a farm, by parents who themselves had migrated from Oklahoma to flee the demise of farming in the Dustbowl, Owens was aware of both re-location, and the agricultural landscape. Furthermore, Owens possessed an aversion to photography as a fine art form. Indeed, he fared poorly at San Francisco State University, where he disagreed with his tutors, eschewing formal values for an attempt to practice visual anthropology. After a spell in the Peace Corps as a teacher, Owens returned to California, and in 1968 found work as a photographer for the Livermore Independent.
In 1973 this collection of photographs, 'Suburbia', was published in book form. Images in both color and black and white are presented - often with captions: detailing the names of those portrayed, or offering their opinions in the form of short quotes. As a chronicle of the good folks of Livermore, 'Suburbia' is a revelation of homemakers' American Dreams. Cars and carpets, furniture and fireplaces, lawns and laminated surfaces: these new purchases create a gregarious backdrop to hair-do's, housework and hobbies.
Owens continued to capture everyday concerns, publishing two more collections of images in the 70s. Civic groups were documented in Our Kind of People, whilst different occupations were recorded in Working. I do it for the Money. His work has been included in exhibitions from the 70s until the present day, whilst Suburbia was republished in 1999.
Retrospectively, Owens was the right man in the right place, several factors in his life contributing to the conception of the 'Suburbia' photographic project. Raised on a farm, by parents who themselves had migrated from Oklahoma to flee the demise of farming in the Dustbowl, Owens was aware of both re-location, and the agricultural landscape. Furthermore, Owens possessed an aversion to photography as a fine art form. Indeed, he fared poorly at San Francisco State University, where he disagreed with his tutors, eschewing formal values for an attempt to practice visual anthropology. After a spell in the Peace Corps as a teacher, Owens returned to California, and in 1968 found work as a photographer for the Livermore Independent.
In 1973 this collection of photographs, 'Suburbia', was published in book form. Images in both color and black and white are presented - often with captions: detailing the names of those portrayed, or offering their opinions in the form of short quotes. As a chronicle of the good folks of Livermore, 'Suburbia' is a revelation of homemakers' American Dreams. Cars and carpets, furniture and fireplaces, lawns and laminated surfaces: these new purchases create a gregarious backdrop to hair-do's, housework and hobbies.
Owens continued to capture everyday concerns, publishing two more collections of images in the 70s. Civic groups were documented in Our Kind of People, whilst different occupations were recorded in Working. I do it for the Money. His work has been included in exhibitions from the 70s until the present day, whilst Suburbia was republished in 1999.
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13. Signs 1
14. Signs 3
15. Signs 5
16. Portland 1
17. Portland 3
18. Food 1
19. Food 3
20. Food 5
21. Food 7
22. Guns
23. Paint
24. Car 1
25. Car 3
26. Car 5
27. Woolrich 1
28. Woolrich 3
29. Woolrich 5
30. Worker
31. Wet Window
32. Tree
33. Three Men
34. Tattooed Man
35. Silver Teeth
36. Shoes
37. Runners
38. Roller Rink
39. Fairground Rides
40. Ranch
41. Private Property
42. Painting
43. Monster
44. McDonalds
45. Appliances And Kitchens
46. Highway
47. Sandpit
48. Fruit
49. Feet
50. Ears
51. Crotch
52. Close
53. Chicken
54. Cabbie
55. Bushes
56. Cheese Burger
57. Lingerie
58. Bee Tent
59. Beads
60. BBQ
61. Balloons
62. Bacon
63. Altamont 1
64. Altamont 3
65. Altamont 5
66. Altamont 7
67. Altamont 9
68. Altamont 11