These are photographs from my grandparents' condominium units.  My mother's parents and dad's parents moved from the homes they raised their children in to identical units in different buildings in the same condo complex in 1989.  These photos were taken in December 2004 so quite a bit of the furniture they moved from their homes has been replaced but you can still pick out themes. 

 

The primary reason for this project was to introduce a new aspect to the endless nature/nurture argument.  It also complicates the question as to what degree mass-produced residences appeal to similar people and to what degree similar people are created by them.  It also illustrates how people tend to marry people from the same economic class. 

 

I photographed these with a Hasselblad SWC/M, using Polaroid proofs to align the camera accurately.  I actually did this exact project for the first time in Feb of 2004 but decided to rephotograph it for technical reasons (I changed some of the locations and used different film that better dealt with the mixed lighting) and to include the Christmas element.  These negatives were drum scanned by West Coast Imaging (www.westcoastimaging.com) and the prints you see in the final image are 22X22 digital prints.  The digital printing allowed lighting issues to be better handled and helped for greater overall consistency in the printing.  I chose the somewhat odd 22X22 size because the printing and framing price nearly doubled at 24X24.

     

 

 

 

 

These two were the only ones that suffered pretty obvious alignment problems, obviously I have nobody to blame but myself for this slopiness.  Luckily it's not quite so obvious in the actual large prints. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments and criticisms welcome.  One criticism I've heard repeatedly is that these don't look like condos where grandparents would live, I think that's born out of the fact Hollywood would rarely use an actual residence without modifiying it to look like how  a particular type of person's residence is "supposed" to look. 

 

Anyway I'm putting these on the web in order to spread the word that "someone's done that".  No doubt someone will eventually come up with the same idea so I'm trying to stake some territory. 

Now, the second someone posts a photo series like this, you can sue them for one meellion dollars.

 

Nice photos, by the way. Flawless match on the angle, focal length and and lighting.

^Actually there was no auxillary lighting.  I used a camera that is commonly used to make the high quality photos you see in real estate and architectural publications but didn't use lights or dress up the spaces.  I had to use the place's actual lights otherwise it would have been too dark.  I was worried that by using strobes and umbrellas would have been difficult to get the same lighting in each. 

 

Also I forgot to add that by chance these condo units actually face the exact same direction so the sunlight is quite similar in both on overcast days.  I also took two pairs of photos on the exteriors but they didn't turn out too well and since it's a ton of money to make this stuff I left them out.   

bubble gum pink paint must be popular in that development.

 

the way you matched up the photos was very impressive.

 

Great idea!  Where are the photo's being displayed?

 

(Sorry no constructive criticism comes to mind, just compliments on the concept and its execution!)

 

yeah what a cool idea and very well done. it makes ya think about, ohh, the way we are.

 

***tips cap to the mighty hasselblad too***

bubble gum pink paint must be popular in that development.

It contrasts with the blue hair so nicely.

>bubble gum pink paint must be popular in that development.

 

Funny you should mention that, because there are about 20 buildings and so 20 of these units plus 20 that are reversed.  There is a clubhouse and pool where all the retirees spend their days so people trade ideas on what tends to work in these spaces. I suppose it would be pretty interesting to study how much they rub off on one another. 

 

 

>Where are the photo's being displayed

 

This photo is from OU's old gallery in 2005, it is not very nice.  Haven't gotten around to showing these since then.  I'm certainly not counting on them selling, I don't know what kind of person would want these hanging in their house.   

 

> it makes ya think about, ohh, the way we are.

 

Yes, this is my hope that people think about themselves too, not just these spaces because it's not really about these specific condos. 

 

 

**tips cap to the mighty hasselblad too***

 

Sadly had to sell it to pay bills.  There's not much justification for keeping around a camera worth $3,000 that you aren't making at least half that much annually with.