HOW IT ALL BEGAN
I grew up in a mobile home park, Li’l Wolf, located in rural Eastern Pennsylvania where my parents still live today. As a child I had deep embarrassment and lack of understanding of the stigmas surrounding this type of housing community; but over the past decade or so I’ve become more in tune with why people choose to live in Mobile Homes and the pros and cons that come along with ownership. Mobile home parks (MHP’s) are all different sizes and layouts full of people of different ethnicities, ages, and background around the United States. Each neighborhood is unique in its layout, its homes, communities, and relationships the residents create with one another. I want to explore and archive these homes and communities in hopes of enacting change in our society on how they view affordable housing and how thousands of people throughout the United States choose to live.
For the past 5 years I’ve documented mobile home parks (over 25 sites and counting) and interviewed residents; compiled research on the mobile home industry and culture; and created and exhibited work influenced by these rudimentary archives I’ve built and my personal history growing up in a double-wide trailer.
This blog is set up as a platform for others to follow along on my journey of documenting MHP’s and the role they play in affordable housing in this country. I will travel back to where it all began for me, Li’l Wolf, my parents MH community. I will be conducting, for the first time, interviews of my family members and also documenting using my fathers camcorder from the 90’s. I will be exploring topics of mobile home culture and what the American Dream means to them and to other families in their neighborhood.
I look forward to sharing my photographs, interviews, and videos and having a place where people can access my work from afar. Its important to archive MH neighborhoods because they are often overlooked and hidden from the public. There’s an important history here that I aim to uncover and record. I will also be revisiting projects from past installations and travels pertaining to mobile home culture. Whether you are someone unfamiliar with MH’s or if you are a seasoned owner, park manager, mobile home transporter, or manufacturer I invite you to follow along and reach out to me if you would like to share your story!
Please contact amyb.ritter@gmail.com for any inquiries and if you are interested in having me visit your neighborhood or home. Want to be added to my mailing list? Send me an email to keep updated on events and new posts!