Second Quarter Report, 2006
on Jay Ruby's Oak Park Research

Oak Park in Estonia

I was invited by Peeter Linnap, head of the Department of Photography at the Tartu Art College in Estonia to give two lectures during the week of May 22nd. One lecture was on my study of death and photography as seen in the above photo and the other lecture was about the Oak Park Stories. As the audience was mainly photo students, their primary interest was methodological. They asked many questions about how one goes about doing this kind of field work. They were also curious about what goes on in a U.S. suburb as they are new to such things.

Some Completions

It is with some relief that I announce the completion of the third Oak Park Story, Dear Old Oak Parkers and Val, a DVD about Val and her legendary record store in Oak Park, Val's Halla. I expect to be able to announce their availability sometime in early July. I have submitted Val to the Oak Park Film Festival and hope to have it screened in September.

The last portrait

I am now beginning to work on the last of the Oak Park Stories. It deals with the Oak Park Regional Housing Center as the cornerstone of Oak Park's approach to intregration and diversity. As it is an institutional portrait it will differ significantly from the other two portraits which were about families. I have the most video footage of all the portraits as well as the most written work. Organizing the materials into something coherent and small enough to fit on a CD-ROM will be a challenge. However, as I now have solved the majority of technical problems, I assume this portrait will take less time than the others. My goal is to be finished by the end of the year.

Working With Bob

My interaction with Bob Trezevant while completing the 3rd family portrait was most unusual when compared with the traditional relationship between subject and researcher in an ethnographic study. To begin we became close friends, a friendship that will last far beyond the making of this portrait. From the first time we met, Bob became an active assistant always suggesting people to meet and places to go. He examined and critiqued an almost completed version of the portrait and then came to my home for a long weekend to go over things with a very careful eye and to do a final interview. As his wife and mother-in-law both died before I finished the portrait, his participation became vital. For those who still believe in objectivity our relationship will be regarded as clearly over the line. For me, it is a model to follow for those lucky enough to find people who wish to actively aid in the construction of their ethnographic self.

As always I welcome your comments, criticisms and suggestions. Email me at ruby@acsworld.com