Fence on Elm Street by Paul VanDerWerf is licensed under CC-BY 2.0
Car Crash by YleArkisto is licensed under CC-BY 3.0
When you see a home with white picket fence, you’re probably imagining the big happy family living inside. You might even imagine some kids playing in this yard or dogs running around protected by the safety of the fence. At least that is what a fence is supposed to provide- safety, protection, and boundaries.
My mind, however, always goes to the poor house at the end of the street where I grew up. Their white picket fence was always being knocked down by cars going too fast around the bend. In just a few seconds, the idea of a fence being protection is shattered. The fence had to be repaired almost every year.
The Fence on Elm Street by Paul VanDerWerf has a slightly dreary underlying tone to the image as the grass and trees are practically all dead. Even with the sad wintry photo, you might still imagine a happy family inside curled up by a fire with hot cocoa. This photo paired with the audio Car Crash by YleArkisto gives what could still be happy and uplifting imagery of a house with a white picket fence, a more serious and negative tone. The sound of a speeding car trying to come to a stop, followed by a crash tells the story of the white picket fence that I knew growing up.
When I initially saw the image, the sound is not what I expected to hear. That is so sad to hear about your neighbors that needed to constantly repair their fence because of drivers. How scary that must be if you live there! I love the picture, especially how uniform the fence is, like little soldiers protecting the house. And like protectors, the soldiers get hurt in order to defend their home. I wonder about what’s going on in the other end of the house, if children get scared or if the adults are angry because (yet again!) the fence is down again.
Nice to meet you, Lena! That is a nice house, and I was surprised by the audio clip that accompanied the image. After reading your story, the title seems appropriate.
It was only after connecting the two that I realized there wasn’t any grass outside of the fence, and the trees were all bare. I wondered, what was is it about the road nearby that attracts so many accidents? Despite the gloom and broken fences needing repair every year and the bare lawn, this image of a house still sits as an inviting home that you probably remember yours as.
Hi Lena! When I first saw this picture I expected to hear the sounds of laughter and children playing but the audio you selected creates a thought-provoking and emotionally charged narrative. The somber undertones in the image, with dead grass and trees, set against the backdrop of a wintry scene, reflect a certain melancholy. The visual of elements combined with the audio of a speeding car, attempting to come to a stop but ultimately crashing, adds a layer of seriousness and negativity to the otherwise cheerful imagery associated with a white picket fence. An audio clip with the sounds of a winter breeze could contribute to the wintry ambiance in the photo.