Surrealist photographer Alex McDowell shares her newest series of work that grapples with returning to her childhood home in the midst of the pandemic and facing all the memories and emotions tied to the space. Below, she shares with us the intention and process behind DOLLHOUSE.

Photographer: @alexmcdw

Interview: @abbey.gregs

Stay tuned for more from NYC artists!

EYES&EDGE: How did you decide on the title name DOLLHOUSE?

ALEX MCDOWELL: The name comes from a little house in my backyard at home in Washington. It was built before we moved in, probably for some kids that used to live there. My brother and I were teenagers by the time we moved in and “the dollhouse” became this weird sort of hideaway.

EYES&EDGE: What was the inspiration and intent for this series?

ALEX MCDOWELL: Before making the series I had recently gone home to live with my family after thinking I would never be in that position again. I was practically alone the entire time. Being alone takes you to weird places. I started to observe objects and spaces in ways I hadn’t before and eventually was fixating on these alternate realities and childhood memories. Dollhouse essentially became a fusion of the two over a very intense two weeks.

It allowed my current self to be reacquainted with my past self. It felt like I was building a relationship with my childhood. (The young girl in all these images is actually my cousin. We’ve been shooting together since she was very young.)

ALEX MCDOWELL: Making dollhouse, it felt like I was piecing together a story that I didn’t know the end to. It was a lot of digging and experimenting, and finding things in my head that I didn’t know were there.

Photography for me has always felt like this escape that the dollhouse represents. It’s an escape from life as we know it. Growing into myself as an artist I have continuously felt the need to make images that were so perfect to the point it was almost unsettling. I am interested in why people are drawn to perfection and amused by fear, and what happens when the two intersect.

EYES&EDGE: What’s next for you?

ALEX MCDOWELL: I’m back in New York which has me thinking under different circumstances. I’ve been getting into the idea of creating sets from scratch and building new spaces. I want to keep pushing this idea of separate realities, like dream sequences and distorted time. Everything has a little story beneath the surface, and I’ve been interested in what that might look like in video. One day, maybe even a movie. Who knows!

EYES&EDGE: Where should people go to find more from you or get in touch?

ALEX MCDOWELL: You can find more on my insta, @alexmcdw, or my personal website!