Cottage Life (9 Photos)

All photos © Douglas Ljungkvist.

Douglas Ljungkvist first experienced Ocean Beach, New Jersey, in the early Nineties while visiting friends vacationing there. His first impression was that it looked like a work camp, mainly because of the enormous area with its small cottages, all the same size, laid out in a grid with streets made of sand.

Through this work, Ljungkvist takes on the role of visual historian and anthropologist as he works to capture the fast growing minority of cottages that have not yet shed its wood paneling and kitschy beach decorations for generic white sheetrock walls, flat screen TVs, and Wi-Fi Internet access. This may offer vacationers more comfort and conveniences but also sacrifices the strong sense of place and charm that Ljungkvist remembers. He has come here five times since that initial visit in the Nineties and plans to keep coming back.