#shotinsoho

[mulaphotograph]

@thephotographersgallery #thephotographersgallery #shotinsoho #photography (at The Photographers' Gallery) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8WdTnVHEnj/?igshid=7fdqprosddvd

[jasminekee]

Exhibition Review: A culture immortalised: Shot In Soho at The Photographers’ Gallery.

Soho - a Central London hot-bed for creativity, culture and community, and home to The Photographers’ Gallery since 2012. Shot In Soho, curated by Julian Rodriguez and TPG’s Karen McQuaid, is an original exhibition celebrating the rich history and culture of the area in which the gallery sits. 

Tucked away behind the grand facades of John Nash’s Regent Street, Soho remains a village at heart. A one-square mile of the capital whose rich history is one of diversity, non-conformity and resistance. Despite bordering one of London’s most commercialised areas, it has always retained its identity. Interestingly (as noted in the exhibition’s wall text) Shot In Soho comes at a time when the area faces transformation from the impending completion of the Cross Rail transportation hub. The exhibition, then, leads the way in recognising and remembering the extraordinary history of an area that is soon likely to be changed. 

Through a mix of photographs and ephemera - as well as a specially commissioned film and podcast series - the exhibition reflects Soho’s complex creative history in an engaging way. Seven photography series, ranging from the late 1960s to the present day, make up the core of the exhibition. They offer visitors a rare opportunity to view largely un-exhibited images by renowned photographs including William Klein, Corrine Day and Andres Petersen. As well as works and commissions by lesser known and emerging artists: Kelvin Brodie, Daragh Soden, Clancy Gebler Davies and John Goldblatt. Other finds include a Sergio Larrain archive photograph depicting locals at the now infamous The French House in 1959; and a John Deakin image showing artists Lucien Fraud, Francis Bacon and Frank Auerbach enjoying lunch at Wheelers Restaurant.

Older works (those by Klein, Petersen and Goldblatt) depict the historic character and creativity of Soho. Photographs taken in night clubs, strip clubs, sleazy saunas, bars, pubs and cafes, in people’s homes and on the streets at night, document the lives of individuals and communities. They capture the connections made by people; those that lived in Soho’s so-called seedy underbelly. This same spirit is captured in the gallery’s newest commission by Soden, Looking for Love (2018). Highlighting ‘the web of street corners where couples have dated, kissed and argued […] when the drink is wearing off’, it provides a contemporary portrait of an area that is as rich in character as it has always been. Gebler Davies’ black and white series taken at the infamous Colony Room Club sits against a ‘bilious-green' backdrop reminiscent of the club’s thickly painted walls. Days’ The Brewer Street Works (1990-2003) are striking in their nineties grunge-chic aesthetic. Though they are arguably my favourites, one would be forgiven for wondering what they tell us about Soho as an area other than that they were taken at the artists’ Brewer Street flat/studio.

Shot In Soho commemorates and champions the spirit of Soho. It offers a timely opportunity for visitors to view the area through the eyes of renowned photographers and contemporary practitioners alike; highlighting the myth and character of a place forever rich in both. 

Shot In Soho is on display at The Photographers’ Gallery, Soho, London, until the 9th February 2020. Entry costs £5/2.50 and is free after 17:00. 

[jasminekee]