Bohemian Spitalfields

I have often wandered into the Old Spitalfields Market even when I don't quite intend to be there, and have ended up spending hours walking through and by the fashion markets and the vintage shops. It is perhaps the eccentric bohemian hidden in my closet that emerges to fish these scenes out.

If you like what you see here and have an affinity for the East End like I do, you might like the first few books listed on the right hand column of this page. As for me, I'm plotting my next escapade into the old notorious alleys of the East End. Until then.

A Passage To The East End

Behind the money making powers; behind the glass and concrete towers; behind The Suits and the expensive watches ticking to the work day; behind the booms and the busts and the redundancy pays; behind the lunch sandwiches and Friday pints...lies one of the many streets of the East End of London.

I wandered into one of them and brought back a few snapshots....

...and something tells me they hide more than a few stories.
I'll be going back for more.

Another London: Brick Lane Moments 2

continued from here.

But hey! This is the East End! How could you possibly escape the graffiti and the street art? As much as Brick Lane is a visual, ethnic and cultural entity in its own right, the thread of street art that runs through it ties it with the rest of the East End. Here's what I spotted:

Jeff Soto









Nathan Bowen















An evil Ronald McDonald

And other unidentified ones. (Help appreciated)













Someone does not like New Media:

Brick Lane gives stiff competition to Rivington Street in the graffiti department! If you can identify these works, please do let me know!

...to be continued

Another London: Brick Lane Moments 1

The problem with clicking in East London is that there is just way too much to capture. The signs of decay, the thin, broken layers of regeneration and gentrification, the ethnic veneer, the street art, the life of the people - there is a whole lot to East London and it is a whole lot different from the rest of the city.

It is Another London, an alternate London. And there is no another in the East End like Brick Lane.

Brick Lane is London's Bangla Town - the first home of early 20th Century Bangladeshi refugees in the UK. It is also the erstwhile home of Jack The Ripper, which should tell you about the area's horrific and less than glorious history. It has been the home of wave after wave of immigrants since the 17th Century - the Huguenots, the Jews and the most recent - Bangladeshis. It is after the arrival of the Bangladeshis that there was a revival of Anglo-Indian cuisine in this part of London, a revival that lives on in the several cheap curry houses that the street is now famous for.


And there's more apart from the curry. Some immigrants have launched other businesses and these tend to be clustered on certain patches of the street or on other streets that shoot off the main artery. It is also the setting for Monica Ali's Brick Lane, for Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses (in part), On Brick Lane by Rachel Lichtenstein, Salaam Brick Lane by Tarquin Hall, among others.

And it is not surprising to see why there' s so much contemporary literary interest in this place. For, it is all a little bit surreal: You see Bangladeshi people all around you. The road signs are in English and Bangla. Skull caps, sarees, hijabs, sherwanis and salwar kameez make up the predominant dress code. You stand out in your jeans and bare arms, because you have a south asian face. Shops sell Indian wedding paraphernalia and metres of embroidered cloth. Curry houses blare loud bangladeshi or hindi film music. You can smell curry and spices and marinating meat. As a lone south asian woman with a camera, you attract a lot of male attention - but the camera instils some sort of automatic respect for you in the men. The women cover their faces as they pass by you - they do not want to be clicked. Some older men look disapprovingly at you, but besides themselves with curiousity, keep watching from a distance.

This gentleman stood around giving me a disapproving look but the moment he realised my camera was on him, he walked away!

Some younger ones deliberately saunter into your frame. And a few even oblige you with poses - poses you didn't ask for.

Except for this gentleman who politely asked if I would click a picture of him. When I agreed, he happily struck this pose in front of his shop. Then he gushingly told me no one had clicked a picture of him in a very long time. I offered to email him his picture. Besides himself with happiness, he scrawled out his email id on a piece of paper and asked me about five times "Really? You're serious? You will really email my photo to me?!" (I just emailed it to him, if you're wondering).

And then you see a couple of fashion students walk past and you remember you're still in London.

But that is not all there is to Brick Lane. Watch out for more in the next...

Art: the Formal versus the Informal at Rivington Street

The last time I went to Shoreditch, I only peeped into Rivington Street. I caught sight of works by two of the greatest street artists Britain has produced, got excited, started clicking... and ran out of batteries. Plus, it was biting cold and it was a day when I'd been foolishly optimistic about the weather while dressing up. I had to beat a sorry retreat, albeit with a strong resolve to go back as soon as possible - with an extra set of batteries.

I was rewarded with that opportunity yesterday.

Do correct me if I'm wrong, but Rivington Street seems to me to be the mecca of street art in London. The first thing you notice when you enter the street from the Shoreditch side is Eine's famous (or infamous, depending upon how you're inclined to view street art) typography. It transforms the underside of this bridge from a dingy stinky passageway into an art gallery in its own right.

click on pictures to enlarge

On the opposite wall sits one of the entrances to Cargo, the live music bar, flanked on either side by graffiti - by someone whose name I haven't been able to trace yet. (Leads appreciated).

If this looks familiar, you probably saw it here

*Update: The two silhouette pieces above are by an artist called Sam3. Hat tip: Xylo

Cargo's courtyard/garden on the other side of this bridge is a haven for street art - it houses two famous Banksy works on each end, with multiple Shepard Faireys, an Ego Leonard and other street art in between:

Banksy's 'Designated Graffiti Area' - this one is so precious, it is covered with a pyrex sheet.






Shepard Fairey's 'Obey' posters



Unidentified - help appreciated



Ego Leonard's Lego



Banksy's HMV

I moved out of the rear exit of Cargo and into the courtyard (narrow alleyway) of the Black Rat Press and come across more street art - outside the gallery. And here comes the interesting part, if you haven't figured out from the name already, the Black Rat Press is dedicated to showcasing the best of street art and artists from around the world. It houses works by D'Face, Swoon, Brian Adam Douglas, Slinkachu and Nick Georgiou among others. The name of the gallery is of course taken from Banksy's signature black rat that has made appearances in several cities of the world.

Unidentified, outside Black Rat Press. Any help?



Someone left their paints behind



Love the typography

Like Shoreditch, but less so, Rivington Street is a study in contrast - or perhaps it is a study in tolerance of extremes. The street is littered with art galleries showcasing formal, recognised forms of art, while the walls outside these galleries host works by some of the most well-known street artists. The David Adjaye designed Rivington Place, for example, has an exhibition on by well known South African photographer Santu Mofokeng. Right behind the gallery, enclosed in its own parking space, is a famous Stylo and Mear piece from 2001.

Rivington Street is obviously a place for artists, photographers and designers. Old world sentimentalities about art and design perhaps do not fit in here. Every establishment on this street - cafe, gallery, bar, shop - pays homage to eclecticism and acceptance, an almost-rebellious response to the old school. The contemporary parallels of slick stylishness and alternative movements coexist on the same street, a kilometre long stretch of bohemian utopia.

The Bedroom Bar



The Comedy Cafe



The absolutely lovely ArtWords Book Shop - a tiny treasure trove for resources on contemporary visual arts

I don't care what the puritans say about street art. I believe that as much as it can destroy the fabric of a place, not all street art is subversive. Some brings it back from disuse, back into acceptance and back into character from decay and Rivington Street is an excellent example of this. There is a fine line between mindless graffiti and street art, between wasteful self-indulgence and creativity - and instead of trashing all street art as vandalism, I think that line needs to be recognised and that distinction made.

So far this has been one street where I've felt completely at ease wielding my camera around. No one gave me a suspicious look, no curious glances were thrown my way. Instead, passers-by smiled at me, nodded in understanding, invited me into their galleries. I was running out of time so didn't step into many, but I'm so going back yet again. I had a fantastic time clicking this street despite the cold drizzle on my head, my struggle to keep my lens dry, and the failing light.

Oh, and the extra set of batteries helped - I ran out midway.

PS: If you have an opinion on this, I'd love to hear what you think about street art as a legitimate art form in the comments or on email.