Photo: Steve Schofield
Chewbacca hangs out in a modern-day kitchen? Father-son Darth Vaders pose in the living room next to the telly? A Rebel pilot looks in on his pet goldfish? Photographer Steve Schofield’s latest collection of photos — “Land of the Free” — depicts British sci-fi and fantasy fans dressed as their favorite characters, lounging around their own homes.
Steve Schofield explains his photo series:
My practice is concerned with exploring the fascination that the British public has with American popular culture and the sub-cultural world of fandom. In the images, I have shown people in their own homes and environments wearing costumes that they would be dressed in to attend events with other like-minded individuals. It seeks to offer a glimpse into seemingly ordinary lives of my subjects and allows the private to become public. The work hints at the depth of people’s fantasies and the methods they employ to adopt this culture as part of their own lifestyle as a means of escapism.
The work makes a political reference to globalisation and America’s ongoing ability to infiltrate all cultures via various channels of media. Much of daily life is influenced by ‘Americanisms’ whether through language, food or fashion, which can often be traced back to music videos, the Hollywood film industry, advertising and American sit-coms.
View the full photo collection here:
PHOTOS: Steve Schofield — “Land of the Free”
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SOURCES: ClubJade.net, Neatorama
The Picard guy is a spitting image!
Aren’t half the people who appear in the SW films British anyway? Wasn’t every single SW film at least in part shot in the UK? And while we’re at it, there might be Brits who dress up like cowboys or build teepees in their yard, but don’t we go to Renaissance festivals and Highland Games in the U.S.?
Just sayin’
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The Mysteries of Fandom…
Reading The Official Starwarsblog today, I was pleased to read about photographer Steve Schofield, who has done a series of photographs depicting British sci-fi and fantasy fans dressed as their favorite characters, within the backdrop of their own hom…
Love those Pictures….its completely bizzar to see all those sci-fi characters standing by the T.V or making coffee…
Where the fans come from is irrelevant – How far we go into fandom without completely coming back sometimes is what is fascinating here..
I saw this before on another site… I love how they stare off into space, it gives the picture so much depth and mystique
Glad you like the pictures of our members, we loved working with Steve to ‘catch the moment’. We are a volunteer group of Star Wars fans who come together to support charity and community in the UK by becoming our favourite characters and heroes from the Star Wars universe.
We are always happy to speak to anyone who would like us to support their charity actitivities in the UK. Please feel free to contact us!