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Bill Owens — I don’t feel that Richie playing with guns will have a negative effect, 1970; Our house is built with the living room in the back
Bill Owens

I don’t feel that Richie playing with guns will have a negative effect, 1970; Our house is built with the living room in the back

These two gelatin silver prints by Bill Owens capture the quiet rhythms of suburban American life in the early 1970s, documenting domestic spaces and child-rearing attitudes with his characteristic documentary candor. Owens pairs intimate glimpses of home interiors and backyard life with text drawn directly from his subjects' own words, blurring the line between photography and social commentary. The works reflect his larger project of examining the values, contradictions, and aspirations of the American middle class during a pivotal cultural moment.

Medium
Two gelatin silver prints, one printed later.

🔨 Auction Lot

Photographs

October 1, 2014

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About this work

Bill Owens, I don’t feel that Richie playing with guns will have a negative effect, 1970; Our house is built with the living room in the back

These two gelatin silver prints by Bill Owens capture the quiet rhythms of suburban American life in the early 1970s, documenting domestic spaces and child-rearing attitudes with his characteristic documentary candor. Owens pairs intimate glimpses of home interiors and backyard life with text drawn directly from his subjects' own words, blurring the line between photography and social commentary. The works reflect his larger project of examining the values, contradictions, and aspirations of the American middle class during a pivotal cultural moment.

Medium
Two gelatin silver prints, one printed later.
Seen at
Phillips, New York, London, Hong Kong

Related themes

Middle Class America, 20th Century, Male Artist, Documentary Photography, Black and White Photography, Gelatin Silver Print, American Photographer, Social Commentary, Deadpan Aesthetic, Domestic Scene, Social Documentary, Documentary Photographer, Photojournalism, Neutral Mood, Black and White, Suburban Life, Diptych Format, Candid Photography

More works by Bill Owens