The corner of Hackney fighting back against gentrification to back the African and Caribbean families who set up home
Future Hackney celebrates the Black neighbourhoods who have lived there for generations
'We both have a special relationship with this space handed down from our mothers. Our support for women of African and Caribbean heritage relates to our histories here on this road', Ngozi and Rosanna of Sistah Space (Image: CHASING THE LIGHT 67 / Wayne Crichlow)
A community art project documenting the lives of African and Caribbean East Londoners in the face of change will return to Hackney later this year for its third street exhibition. Over the last few years, Ridley Road and Gillett Square’s Black communities have shared their stories with the world as part of Future Hackney, a street photography exhibition celebrating the lives of those who have lived there for generations.
Future Hackney co-founders, photographer Wayne Crichlow and artist Donna Travis, who both grew up in the area, wanted to spotlight the Black communities and their significance and contributions to Hackney. In the face of inevitable change, Wayne and Donna felt it was important to give African and Caribbean residents a voice as they feel they are being excluded from Ridley Road and Gillett Square regeneration plans.
Street photographer Wayne, who now lives in Essex, explained to MyLondon : "You go away and come back to your roots. The demographic changes, it’s new money and change is inevitable, but are people feeling inclusive? We’ve seen it in Hoxton and Shoreditch. The people there now are not the same. What’s happened to those people?"
'I'm a Kingstonian, born in Jamaica. I came to this country in 1961, and stood by what my grandfather told me, 'stand up for liberty and defend those who are weak'. People around here know me as Denis The Champ,' says Hackney local Denis (Image: Donna Travis)
Donna added: "We don’t want to use that word 'gentrification', it’s about change in the borough and London generally. We are engaging with communities that are not normally engaged with." Community groups that are essential to the people of Hackney, such as RISE 365 and Sistah Space, have featured in past Future Hackney exhibitions and have been awarded by the project with bursaries.
While some individuals snapped by Wayne and Donna have lived in the area since the 1960s. Other locals have had their photos taken among the backdrops of the iconic Ridley Road Market. Since the beginning, Wayne and Donna have wanted to make the exhibition free and accessible for everyone. "Art should be accessible and not just for the few," Donna stressed. "We don't want it in a traditional white gallery space, having it accessible out in the street, we know everyone can attend it," Wayne added.
'This is a place of Afrocentric culture that I associate with the comfort of family', says Ninette (Image: CHASING THE LIGHT 67 / Wayne Crichlow)
Their hope is that their exhibitions will spark a conversation between the old and new communities who are sharing the space together. Though it can take some time to gain the trust of the African and Caribbean residents, it has paid off - Wayne and Donna have been able to build a positive relationship with the communities. While a lot of people new to the area or walking through, have actively engaged with the exhibitions by taking a moment to read and reflect on the people behind the pictures.
"There is a sense of pride, someone has come out and done this. We have put them out there as raw as we can. There is a lot of respect from the community that we can portray them in the right way," Wayne added. The project has since gone not just national, but global, with communities from Manchester and New York expressing their gratitude to Wayne and Donna for portraying African and Caribbean residents in the wake of regeneration so sensitively.
Wayne and Donna hope as artists, "we are part of the solution for people coming to the area to have a true understanding". When asked if change in an area could progress positively, Donna suggests communities should meet and engage with each other far more "to avoid a modern-day diaspora".
The pair are now raising money for their third exhibition, 'Ridley Road Stories Part 3' which is expected to open later this year. While a lot of it is still under wraps, Wayne and Donna told MyLondon their third exhibition will feature "15 documentary stories" in the form of biodegradable posters on the floor of Gillett Square that will naturally disintegrate.
'I got lost here when I was a baby, and when people found me, they took me back to my dad’s shop on Ridley Road', says Illyassou (Image: CHASING THE LIGHT 67 / Wayne Crichlow)
After this, the exhibition will be able to view through video footage captured by a drone. A GoFundMe has so far raised £765 out of a £2,000 target. The money raised will help pay for the creation and installation of the project, which has been supported by The National Lottery and The Red Cross in Dalston in the past.
You can read more about Wayne and Donna's GoFundMe here.