Todd Hido: Eerie Night Time Photographs of People's Houses
Landscape photography and architecture photography are popular genres for photographers looking to move outside of portraiture. Popular landscape and building images are usually taken in broad daylight with warm lighting and rich colors. Todd Hido goes the opposite way, capturing grim houses and grey landscapes in his House Hunting and Roaming series.
House Hunting
Todd Hido is an American photographer best known for his photographs on night-time urban settings. Hido's most famous work is "House Hunting" which collects his moody photographs of rural houses at night. House Hunting was originally published in 2001, and shows a different side of Americana; whereas other photographers take pictures of quaint settings, Hido set about photographing old, dilapidated and somber houses. His house photographs draw inspiration from his youth in Ohio, where the suburban neighborhoods were the scenes of sometimes violent Vietnam War protests.
To add to the air of mystery, Hido's house pictures oftentimes have dimly lit rooms in them. Hido purposefully includes them since he sometimes wonders about who lives there and what they are doing at that particular moment.
In his related work "Outskirts", also captures the Americana, but in an even more unflattering view. The settings are usually dirty and grim, with cars sat unmoved in the snow and muddy puddles reflecting the fogginess of tungsten light. Concrete roads are shown with visible cracks, and the grey monotony of the night is highlighted by grey moonlight.
The feeling of cold is more pronounced here, and the concept of Liminal Space is felt. A liminal space is one that feels transitory, as if the viewer is not meant to be there at that particular time, or one that's mean to serve as a connection between real spaces. Images of liminal spaces have become more popular online, and they intend to provoke an uncomfortable feeling in the viewer, the same feeling that Hido's images also effect on the viewer.
Interiors
Venturing into the homes, Hido also captured scenes of empty houses. The subject of these photos are bare rooms, sometimes in-between tenants. Walls are barren, and furniture are excluded. These interiors were captured at around the same time as House Hunting, and at first glance, they seem to share a familiar aura; barren and empty.
These interior images were created more than 10 years ago, but the recent COVID pandemic and the ensuing lock-downs have allowed viewers to revisit these images in a fresh light. Whereas residents should enjoy their houses and belongings, Hido's interiors show a different world of what could have been had people chosen to stay behind.
Roaming
After Hido's work in House Hunting, he went in the somewhat opposite direction; photographing landscapes devoid of houses. In "Roaming", the landscapes are bare yet familiar, taken during the day, yet with hints of darkness. Hido's landscapes cannot help but recall his House Hunting and Outskirts days. Even without the obvious signs of civilization, there is always a hint of the human presence. These include roads, bridges, signs, and even litter.
Hido admits that he creates the rainy mood intentionally; when the weather is fair and no rain is in sight, he'll spray his car windshield with some water to create the illusion of somberness. Through these suggestions, Hido creates pictures where the viewer is a traveler, always between worlds yet never disconnected from civilization.
Todd Hido's Portraits
Recently, Hido has worked on photographic portraiture. These portraits focus on women in settings reminiscent of Americana; these are usually solitary subjects in an empty hotel room or bedroom, projecting a somber mood. Unlike Hido's previous works where houses and landscapes are devoid of people, Hido's portrait subjects are made obvious and establish a connection with the viewer, with the women often looking directly into the camera.
While the portraits are staged, Hido looks for the unguarded moment where the subject is seemingly in between takes. as if they are thinking inwardly. These portraits imply something else, as if the subjects are waiting for a moment that may never come.
More of Todd Hido can be found on his official website. For photobooks, there are a lot to choose from. There's the original House Hunting, now in its 2nd edition. There's also Outskirts, also a recent update (2021 edition). For an overview of his work, check out Todd Hido on Landscapes, Interiors, and the Nude: The Photography Workshop Series.
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