| 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.
n 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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1.Signs 1
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2.Signs 3
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3.Signs 5
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4.Portland 1
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5.Portland 3
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6.Food 1
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7.Food 3
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8.Food 5
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9.Food 7
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10.Guns
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11.Paint
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12.Car 1
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13.Car 3
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14.Car 5
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15.Woolrich 1
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16.Woolrich 3
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17.Woolrich 5
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18.Worker
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19.Wet Window
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20.Tree
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21.Three Men
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22.Tattooed Man
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23.Silver Teeth
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24.Shoes
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25.Runners
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26.Roller Rink
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27.Fairground Rides
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28.Ranch
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29.Private Property
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30.Painting
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31.Monster
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32.McDonalds
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33.Appliances And Kitchens
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34.Highway
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35.Sandpit
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36.Fruit
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37.Feet
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38.Ears
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39.Crotch
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40.Close
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41.Chicken
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42.Cabbie
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43.Bushes
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44.Cheese Burger
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45.Lingerie
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46.Bee Tent
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47.Beads
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48.BBQ
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49.Balloons
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50.Bacon
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51.Altamont 1
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52.Altamont 3
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53.Altamont 5
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54.Altamont 7
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55.Altamont 9
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56.Altamont 11
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