A Truman Show

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For the past six months, I have been house-sharing in what feels a bit like a Truman Show bubble.

South Village, in South Burlington, is a carefully planned community of sidewalks, bike paths, a farm stand, and nature walks offering views east to the Green Mountains and west to the Adirondack. The houses vary in design, but share a certain family resemblance. Most have porches in front, back, and, when the floor plan permits, on the side. The landscaping is maintained by the community, giving the neighborhood a pleasantly uniform appearance, although residents manage to add their own personal touches.

I could spend the rest of my photographic life here without exhausting the possibilities. Most of the images I have made over the past six months were taken within walking distance of my temporary home. The photographs below testify to the beauty that the developer—or perhaps the director—has created.

Like Truman, I sometimes wonder whether the world around me is a little too carefully arranged. But unlike Truman, I am free to leave whenever I wish.

The curious thing is that I’m not sure I want to.

It’s a little bit of planned utopia, with good sidewalks, attractive scenery, and no need to travel far to find my next photograph. If this is a bubble, at least the light is lovely inside it.

Truman 1

Truman 2

Truman 3

Truman 4

Truman 5

Truman 6