Home Is Where the Couch Is: Photos by Natcha Wongchanglaw

While accommodations vary greatly from couch to couch, one thing is always certain: there’s usually no photo of where you’ll be sleeping. Instead, the descriptions written by the hosts usually give a sense of what to expect—whether it’s a private room, a couch, or sometimes sharing a bed with the host. This lack of certainty makes each couch stay feel like a unique experience shaped by the host and the space they offer.

Each photograph in the series showcases a different homeowner—someone from a faraway land with a unique story, work, and lifestyle. The range is striking: a free-spirited woman in Mexico who works nightly on Booking.com and at parties, a government speaker from Canada and a nudist in Brooklyn. Natcha’s lens captures not just the hosts, but the subtle dynamics that emerge when living under someone else’s roof—sometimes comfortable, sometimes awkward, but always deeply personal.

The project began during Natcha’s time at art school in New York, where he turned to couchsurfing to alleviate the loneliness of starting fresh in a new city. For him, it was not a way to find a bed for the night, but an opportunity to connect, learn and grow. The series is a portrait of these relationships—some fleeting, others enduring—and ultimately reflects that we are all travelers looking for a place to call home.