The American photographer Bill Owens documented the suburbs in the early 1970s, largely employing a photojournalistic approach. Gregory Crewdson revisited the suburbs in the 1990s, rendering the internal struggles of white, suburban lifestyles cinematically in large, color photographs. The middle class, multi-ethnic lifestyle, however, does not have a presence within the contemporary art world.

In Suburbia, I explore suburban life within the African American culture. It is intended to contrast the American media's projection of the "typical" African American community with a more realistic picture of normal African American life. My intent is to also explore the variations and similarities of an existence that subverts lifestyle and culture, particularly as it relates to Americanism.