20 Nostalgic Photos of '90s Teenagers in Their Bedrooms _ OldTimeUS

As a haven from what is often the most painful and tumultuous period in a young person's life, the bedroom may be the only place teenagers can truly express themselves. Few teenagers welcome anyone in their bedroom, least of all adults.

Having first begun the series in the 80s, shooting teen spaces on the west coast, from Seattle to Los Angeles, photographer Adrienne Salinger has been allowed to enter the private lives of forty-three teens. Her images, taken over a two-year period, offer an intimate glimpse into these intimate escapes and the adolescents who have made them their own. Even small objects in each room reveal much about the hopes, fears, and dreams of each teen pictured: a poster of a heavy metal band on a wall, various religious icons arranged on a shelf, a well-worn stuffed animal on a bed.
Salinger's interviews with her subjects accompany each photograph, illuminating the harsh realities of some of their lives. A far cry from two-dimensional caricatures on "Happy Days," several of these kids have already had to deal with drugs, pregnancy, physical abuse, racism, and death.