Roommates is a project that examines platonic relationships which stem from people sharing a common space. It grew from an interest in the formation of platonic relationships in college. I was curious about how student residences came to be, and the ways they evolved over time. I wanted to understand why certain pairs of roommates worked altruistically. Was it due to their personalities? Did the environmental aspects of living spaces have an effect on relationship tension? These were just a few questions I had. After shooting a few pairs of college students my interest widened as I became curious about older sets of roommates. I wondered about the factors that led to middle-aged non-students living with others. Surprisingly it wasn’t solely due to economic reasons. Many of the older roommates I’ve talked to simply wish to live with platonic friends who have similar interests and beliefs. I've learned through shooting the project that people who are roommates give and take from each other, in order to live more balanced lives. This could be through material things like sharing objects, making food, etc. Or it could be socially. I've learned that specific people often play the role of caretaker, cook, the empathetic one, etc.

Annie and Eliza are roommates as well as travellers. After taking a gap year from school, they decided to go on a road trip around the U.S. Coming from Vermont, they briefly stopped in Portland, OR.

Brendon and June are my roommates. I had lived with them for 4 months when I took this photo. They have a great synergy with one another that goes beyond a father and daughter relationship. They are good friends that truly seem to get each other. I have never seen a more honest child and parent relationship. At the age of 3 June is one of the most emotionally mature and odd children I’ve ever met. She loves to wash dishes, sip kombucha, ask questions, eat beets, and talk in the kitchen at night. On free days we hang out and do pushups together and listen to her favorite record “Whenever you're away from me” from the 80s fantasy musical Xanadu.⁣

"My brother is a musician who's been making music for quite some time now, his name is Davari (left) and he is currently working on something very different than what he's used to. We have the same dad but different moms. I grew up with my mother whereas he was raised by our grandma (our dad's mother). We would see each other every other weekend and lived together as kids for a few months every now and then. About 4 years ago we started hanging out more at our dad's house since he lived there. I was living in Tacoma with my mom, so naturally, I came to visit my dad who lived in my hometown. We realized we shared similar ambitions as well as thought patterns. After a few years and both of us moving around a bit, we decided we'd cut out roommates and live together. At this point, we're currently looking at either opening a storefront before the end of the year or relocating to a place where we can run our small businesses from home. Our plans include opening a sort of an art gallery as well as an antique/thrift type shop."

“Jannike and I met freshman year (2016). She lived down the hall, and I heard people playing music in her room, so I decided to go talk to her. We immediately got along. Our relationship is different than my relationship with the other roommates. Everyone in the house is very different from one another. What makes Jannike and my relationship unique is that we get each other's sense of humor really well. A lot of our communication is just us laughing at each other. People probably think we’re crazy.”

Max and Isaiah are pictured in their room that they call "the patchouli forest". On their free days, they enjoy smoking and practice the ukelele on their rooftop that overlooks Portland. They are very different people but have a common "anything goes" personality that makes them work well together as roommates.

"Our energies play off of each other’s well, each one of us brings something similar yet slightly different to the table. It’s much easier being roommates with people you’re already friends with and enjoy being around then some unknown craigslist situation. You’re more empathetic, understanding and receptive with your friends than with someone you only live with. I met Arianna about 4 years ago in Boise, Idaho. We were in the same friend group and became fast friends, eventually becoming roommates there. We moved to Portland together where I met Dana under similar circumstances"

Magnus on IG