7am Living Room Couch 2006/2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

7am - Living Room Couch 2006/2016

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I first heard the term, Ordinary Time, sitting at church with my Mother every Sunday morning. It refers to any week of the Catholic liturgical year that is not associated with Easter or Christmas. On those days, there were no decorations, carols, candy, or gathering in front of the camera to take pictures for the family album. At the beginning of the service, the pastor would count each week of Ordinary Time until the year had past. I spent countless ordinary Sundays with my mom, so many that those memories formed a forgettable continuum. Waking up, making toaster waffles, going to church, doing homework, watching football…much of my family experience has been organized around routines, a series of set pieces that are reenacted daily and on schedule by the hour.


8am Morning Talk Shows 2006/2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

8am - Morning Talk Shows 2006/2016

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8am Wheaties, Cookies, Newspaper 2021 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

8am - Wheaties, Cookie, Newspaper 2021

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I used to joke with friends that at any particular time of day, I could accurately predict where my family was, exactly what they were doing, eating, watching, etc. In 2006, I started to take photos of the ordinary daily minutia surrounding my mother, father, and brother who still resided in the same home I grew up in on 8867 Edgehill Road. At that time, observing my family’s routine felt like a comforting exercise in nostalgia, as I had struggled to define myself my first few years away from home. Since 2016, I returned home more often, not long after an accident involving my mother that left her alive but permanently brain damaged. The images in this series are moments in time, separated by 10 years, that show the daily patterns and rhythms of life that do not necessarily change, but adapt to alterations in the family dynamic.

8am Leaky Tupperware 2021 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

8am - Leaky Tupperware 2021

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9am Sweeping the Floor 2006/2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

9am - Sweeping the Floor 2016/2006

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The house in Northeast Ohio that contained all of my nostalgic childhood memories depicted in family albums is cracking and slowly aging, just like our old Chevy Station Wagon that eventually stopped running, and just like my mom’s deteriorated mental state. My brother and father, who both suffer from mental disorders since birth, still inhabit the same space and are struggling to cope emotionally. Yet, the absence of one or multiple family members has never altered the routines of daily life. To be present with my family as a member and as a photographer, only requires me to accept my role and participate in those rituals with them. This is my way of doing it.

10am Turning off the Television 2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

10am - Turning off the Television 2016

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11am Making Lunch 2006/2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

11am - Making Lunch 2006/2016

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12pm Making Calls 2021/2006 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

12pm Making Calls 2021/2006

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​3pm - Checking Messages 2006 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

3pm - Checking Messages 2006

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​3pm - Yardwork 2006/2021 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

3pm - Yardwork 2006/2021

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​4pm - Dad's Slippers 2016/2006 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

4pm - Dad's Slippers 2016/2006

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​4pm - Mom's Things 2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

4pm - Mom's Things 2016

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5pm - Dinner/Tuesday 2016  from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

5pm - Dinner/Tuesday 2016

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5pm - Dinner/Wednesday 2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

5pm - Dinner/Wednesday 2016

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4pm After Work 2021/2006 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

6pm - After Dinner 2021/2006

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​6pm – Evening Walk 2021 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

6pm – Evening Walk 2021

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​7pm - Running Errands 2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

7pm - Running Errands 2016

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8pm – Checking the Garage Door 2021 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

8pm – Checking the Garage Door 2021

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9pm – Hands on the Wall 2021 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

9pm – Hands on the Wall 2021

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10pm – The Evening Routine 2006 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

10pm - The Bedtime Routine 2006


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10pm – The Evening Routine 2016 from the series Ordinary Time by Chris Ireland

10pm - The Bedtime Routine 2016

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