American Exurbia

Between 2001-2005 I photographed mothers and children in their homes, in what were newly developed  “exurbia” communities in New Jersey and Connecticut. At the time, the conversation around these communities was that they were being created ever farther away from the city, to ensure saftey, often with a gate around them. The communities were largely homogeneous and I was drawn to them because I was teaching at a Community College alongside these places, that had once been farms. At the same time, the election of George Bush was said to have been won by these “new exurbia’s”. My interest in photographing the women and children within these developing places, lay in my fascination with the development of identity shaped by environment and my interest in probing a continuity of US pattern of “seeking security” from perceived fear of danger. I came to know the collaborators in my photographs by talking to strangers, often at donut shops or supermarkets as I drove to or from work. These pictures represent my perception of these places, and the people I came to know. While making the work I asked myself what futures these children might grow to have. My photographs exist as an exploration of a US phenomenon of self segregation built upon a painful history of race and class and the impact this has on our future..