Over the past century there have been many changes in the development of house building in terms of location, structure and design. This has resulted in rows and clusters of houses that are essentially the same, however, they have been individualised by their occupants through subtle changes to both the exteriors and interiors. It is these subtle changes that are to be the focus of this body of work.
I hope this work will question why the occupants appear to be fighting to stand out from their neighbors, trying to express their individuality through the changes they have made; this in turn will hopefully provoke the viewer to question their own search for this individuality.
Following on from my recent work ‘Behind Blackpool’ which observed the homogeneity found across northern England, I would now like to further this work on a more personal level with the viewer. Rather than focus on the town as a whole, I intend to narrow down my subject matter to produce a more intimate look at the way we try to individualise our private spaces, as if to rebel against the increasing homogeneity of public spaces.
I intend to produce a series of images exploring the housing landscapes of Blackpool and Manchester. I have chosen these two places as I feel their alternative characteristics of northern towns: Blackpool as a holiday resort and Manchester as a city will provide the most visually interesting results.