Transformation

A couple of weeks ago, on the other side of the Atlantic in Woodstock, NY, I showed some of the images from my Streatham High Road project to a few photographers. I was very surprised, to say the least, when a fellow photographer from Canada told me that he lived in Streatham in the 70s. I thought it was quite amazing to travel to another continent and there by coincidence I meet somebody who has a connection to Streatham!

Bill told me that he didn’t recognise Streatham when he saw my shop front pictures as a lot of things have changed over the years- the demographics have become much more diverse, shops closed down and new ones opened, and some buildings were demolished. Thinking about the transformation an area goes through over the years, I was thinking about all the changes that have happened on Streatham High Road in just the short time frame I have been doing this project- in a city like London there seems to be constant change and adjustment! To name just a few, the MI5 building was demolished (see my previous entry), the White Lion pub re-opened after a face lift, and a couple of cab offices changed their look and owner as well.

Thinking of all the changes reminded me of the role photography plays in documenting the world we live in- the images we take today are interesting now but will be increasingly fascinating as time goes by.

Airport Services

Cosy Cars becomes Southside Cars