Barbara Peacock, a professional photographer living in New England, spent seven years traveling across the United States to take intimate pictures of Americans in their own bedrooms. She called the project “American Bedroom,” which documents the diverse living conditions and lifestyles of her subjects.
The resulting collection of images has been compiled into a captivating book, which will soon be published by Kehrer Verlag. You can secure your copy by pre-ordering here!
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In this article, we’ve selected the most recent photographs, mainly taken in Hawaii, Alaska, and Chicago, which were among the latest states Peacock visited on her journey. Scroll down to become an invisible guest in some of the most private spaces in America!
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#1 Holocaust Survivor – Sonia, Age 94
“I will never forget, I will never forgive but I will never hate.”
Kansas City, Missouri
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
Bored Panda contacted Barbara Peacock again to learn more about her creative process and herself. We got curious about the idea behind “American Bedroom”. The artist shared that the project was born accidentally one spring morning. “I saw my husband wrapped up in the sheets, bathed in golden light, with his snore mask on. It looked like a Renaissance painting. I thought the scene was both beautiful and comical and very contemporary. I got my morning coffee and thought about how I would complete the scene. As I sat there, I looked at the photographs on our dressers of our children and our life together. I thought about the small keepsake drawings and love notes tucked away in my jewelry box from when my children were young. Then I looked at my side table with my books, sleep aids, water, and…coffee ring stains. I thought, ‘God is in the details’. I began to wonder, what if I took photographs of people in their bedrooms, and what if I did it across the whole country? That was the birth of the idea of the ‘American Bedroom’. I first started by photographing people I knew.”
#2 Jon, Age 66
“Caring for my mother in the final months of her life was the most fulfilling, satisfying, terrifying, and profound thing I have ever had the honor to experience. I sensed the trust she had for me to care for her without judgment or reservation and the love we shared was deeper than any we had ever expressed before. I wouldn’t have traded those shared moments for anything, It was her final gift to me.”
Overland Park, Kansas
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#3 Barbara, Age 70
“This is not the path I thought I’d be on, but this is my path now. It is born of love.”
Indianapolis, Indiana
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
The photographer shared that she has always been passionate about photographing people. “I started with a brownie camera and photographed my brothers and my family. I also had a long career as a commercial photographer, specializing in photographing children.”
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#4 Damon, Age 43
“I live surrounded by nature and beauty. Out here, I have everything I need, especially my peace of mind.”
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#5 Sara, Age 33
“Drugs, prison, loss. So, so much loss. Although I tried to leave this world I was saved and now with my newfound faith in God, I’ve found strength I never knew I had. With that strength came a new bond with my children that is concrete and un-breakable. I finally know that I am no longer a burden, but a blessing.”
Kimball, South Dakota
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
During the seven years that she worked on the project, it was inevitable for Barbara Peacock to create lifelong memories. “There have been so many incredible experiences.” However, there are a few that stood out for the photographer – “I photographed a man who lives on a pirate ship in Alaska, four beautiful young sisters and their chickens in Idaho, a 65-year-old farming couple who are still in love in New Mexico, the husband of a girl I went to high school with and had not seen in 40 years in Maine, a family who live in a school bus in Utah, and a 100-year-old woman on a farm in Kansas who walked to the edge of her property waving goodbye to me. The beautiful moments I have experienced are endless. They have enriched my life, and I am honored to have shared them with the beautiful people I have met.”
#6 John, Age 63
“Life has been good to me.”
Chicago, Illinois
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#7 Melissa And James, Ages 36 And 43
“We came from big cities from opposite coasts. We were looking for a quiet place. We were looking for freedom and sunsets and a sky that lets you breathe deep. Montana became our place.”
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
“I believe passion comes from love. As Van Gogh said, ‘There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people,” and that sums it up for me. I love meeting people and having meaningful conversations, sharing a laugh, a coffee, and sometimes a tear or two. Communicating with those who are nearly strangers holds a lot of magic.
It is my hope that when people see the photographs and read the personal statement that accompanies them, they will be moved. This is not about our differences, of which there may be many, but about our likenesses, our loves, our dreams, and all the threads of commonality that connect us as human beings.”
#8 Nicole And Sven, Ages 42 And 38
“We are tattered and distressed, emotionally wiped, just lost a baby and repairing our relationship. We were made for each other from across the oceans, we found each other”
Atlanta, Georgia
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#9 Fin, Age 33
“God gave us the earth as our home, so as long as you are here on Earth you’ll never be homeless.”
Chicago, Illinois
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
This is not the first article on Bored Panda featuring Peacock’s photographs. For more of her work, check out our previous posts by clicking here and here. Tell us what you think by leaving a comment and upvoting your favorite photographs!
#10 Taylor And Shannon, Ages 25 And 26
“All we ever wanted was a love that didn’t remind us of pain. We were never hard to love, we just asked the wrong people to try.”
Salt Lake City, Utah
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#11 Lee Ann And Lynn, Ages 75 And 79
“Life starts in a prone position, just as each day starts and finishes and as life ends.”
Land O Lakes, Florida
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#12 Esther And Jenne , Age 67 And 34
Esther: “In my quiet space, I find rest and confidence in God!”
Jenne: “On Sundays, we like to rest from the week’s hard work, do a little baking for family and friends, and read the bible. Life is a blessing.”
Leola, Pennsylvania
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#13 Jeff And Sharman, Ages 68 And 70
“The struggle of living close to the bone, tragedy, and loss, death, birth, and rebirth. Celebrations of lives well lived and the mourning of those cut short, successes, failures, questions and answers…nothing easy. We’ve walked this path going on four decades now. Tomorrow the sun comes up, and the journey continues.”
Eolia, Kentucky
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#14 Molly And Zoe, Ages 30 And 31
“Sometimes when we think about our childhood selves and not have imagined this – living a life with your best friend.”
Chicago, Illinois
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#15 Bandit, Age 25 They/Them (And Bacon The Kitty)
“I’m living through the largest burden of poverty and health issues that I’ve ever experienced, but I feel more alive than I ever have. Be true to who you are, scream it from the rooftops, and thrive!”
Lexington, Kentucky
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#16 Dennis, Age 63
“I am in the right place. God gave me this gift. When I come home I am free.”
Nikolaevsk, Alaska
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#17 Chelsea And Soul, Ages 37 And 8
“My heart knows this is the best part of my life and it keeps the constant whisper of…’Do not miss this.'”
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#18 Hope (She/Her/He/Him) And Kurt (He/Him), Ages 16 And 17
“I love you with every atom! You are the tranquility of a calm stream and the excitement of a waterfall. You bring me all my favorite feelings. Forever isn’t long enough with you.”
Anchorage, Alaska
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#19 Mek (Siberian-Yupik Tribe), Age 29
“While my physical parts feel safe among my living space, rested against a pillow, my heart yearns for my home, my community, our land.”
(Nunammi- on the land). Anchorage, Alaska
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#20 William, Age 21
“Sometimes I look around me and even on my walls and I just wonder if I’ll ever be one of those people to someone else? I’m trying to finally move forward with my life, study in my field but my own penchant for self-doubt and self-criticism often gets in the way. I need to learn to strong-arm myself into respecting myself or everything will be needlessly more difficult.”
Chicago, Illinois
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#21 Paulina, Age 40
“I live out here because I like to sparkle.”
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#22 Jeremiah, Age 45
“By choice, I have slept in the grass for 6 years. My body is cleansed and pure. When I leave, I leave no trace.”
Kauai, Hawaii
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#23 Alexander And Grace, Ages 26 And 28
“We hold this together with our bare bodies, hands and hearts. Lavishly and somewhat simply. We found this love between us one day and we are grateful for it everyday.”
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#24 Anna And Ruby, Ages 21 And 22
Anna: “As I move through each era of myself, I fall increasingly in love with the new version. Loving myself aggressively and completely is the most radical thing I’ve ever done.”
Ruby: “I am fulfilled by the concept that love is a spectrum, whether romantic, platonic or somewhere in between. After a lonely childhood, I have finally found my place in this new chapter of life that gives me comfort and joy that I have never experienced before.”
Portland, Oregon
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#25 Amy And Eric, Ages 38 And 42
“She asked for my faith. All l had to offer was a song. For her that was a kingdom.”
Nashville, Tennesee
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#26 Kelly, Age 44 (With Frankie)
“Sometimes you win. Sometimes you learn. It’s those ‘losing’ moments that carry weight and bring forth opportunities for movement that could have gone unnoticed had I stood still winning.”
Columbus, Ohio
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#27 Veronica And Griff, Ages 29 And 32
“This is where we share our secrets. Where we share each other. Where we show up and lay our heads with no fear. Rest comes east here despite the world being so unpredictable. This is our home.”
Madison, Wisconsin
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#28 Laura And Spencer, Ages 23 And 23
Spencer (he/him): “My heart lies within me but my home lies within so many other’s hearts. My journey to find my home will never end until I find my way back to myself.”
Laura(she/her): “I’ve had this car as a comfortable and consistent place longer than I’ve lived in any room as an adult so far.”
Portland, Oregon
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#29 Holly, Age 27
“Life is as simple or complex as I choose to make it. There is peace and comfort in knowing that it’s all temporary because it reminds me that my wildest dreams and deepest desires are obtainable and achievable only by me. The only way to get there is to keep moving forward.”
Chicago, IL
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#30 Lee, Age 49
“It’s hard in Pine Bluff. It’s like a black hole, it sucks you in and keeps you.”
Pine Bluff, Arkansas
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
#31 Allie ‘American Girl’, Age 52
“I’m proud to be an American Patriot.”
Shohola, PA
Image credits: barbara.peacock_abedroom
Source: boredpanda.com