Free Exhibition
8th September - 17th October 2014
Last week, I went to a photographic exhibition entitled ‘People in London’ by Richard Slater at the Royal Geographical Society. It showcases photos without pretence about – well – people in London. The photos are straightforward and realistic without any effects, lens flare or the occasional macro. It is just life, fully pixelated life. It’s #nofilter if you speak Instagram.
The name of the exhibition couldn’t be more accurate – because it is like the exhibition, a simple sober description without judgment or categorisation. These aren’t Londoners or People from London. This sober realism is what makes the exhibition so powerful.
Similarly a short note, speaking about the people and places depicted, accompanies each photograph. The style of these descriptions startled me at first. They were bare, purely descriptive, no sense of poetry or use of sophisticated language. Like Slater's pictures they just tell things as they are. It took me a while until I understood that this was how they should be. The pictures and their descriptions don’t pretend, they are real and simple as life. There is no intent to embellish them. I ended up reading every single note, as I grew fascinated and was curious what each and everyone of them had to said.
Richard Slater spent five years recording his view of London, along five categories with a bonus uncategorised ‘London Surprises’ which was my favourite. Also - listen out for the London sounds!
You can definitely feel Slater’s love for the city as he draws a contemporary portrait of the people that make the ever-changing smoggy place that London is.
8th September - 17th October 2014
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| Richard Slater's book |
The name of the exhibition couldn’t be more accurate – because it is like the exhibition, a simple sober description without judgment or categorisation. These aren’t Londoners or People from London. This sober realism is what makes the exhibition so powerful.
Similarly a short note, speaking about the people and places depicted, accompanies each photograph. The style of these descriptions startled me at first. They were bare, purely descriptive, no sense of poetry or use of sophisticated language. Like Slater's pictures they just tell things as they are. It took me a while until I understood that this was how they should be. The pictures and their descriptions don’t pretend, they are real and simple as life. There is no intent to embellish them. I ended up reading every single note, as I grew fascinated and was curious what each and everyone of them had to said.
Richard Slater spent five years recording his view of London, along five categories with a bonus uncategorised ‘London Surprises’ which was my favourite. Also - listen out for the London sounds!
You can definitely feel Slater’s love for the city as he draws a contemporary portrait of the people that make the ever-changing smoggy place that London is.
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